"I want to be side of Papa," The cry of my infant boy, His heart but echoed his lisping, His eyes beamed forth their joy. "I want to be side of Papa," 'Tis strange how memories cling, To the words our children utter Ere they like birds take wing. "I want to be side of Papa," God bless you, my sweet child, On my knees each night I pray Him To keep you undefiled. "I want to be side of Papa," That cry finds lodgment here As my timorous, faltering spirit Cries out to God so near. "I want to be side of Papa," And I, in my small way, Can make my treasure quite happy, My baby of to-day. "I want to be side of Papa," My little boy knows not That the plaintive cry he utters Is with deep meaning fraught. "I want to be side of Papa," O you who have strayed from grace, Return to your Heavenly Father, Behold His loving face. "I want to be side of Papa," The selfsame cry He's heard From many a child of sorrow, Though couched in different word. And so, dear friends who have suffered, And troubled ways have trod, Take home to yourself my lesson And live more close to God. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...EVENING IN A SUGAR ORCHARD by ROBERT FROST LOCKED OUT; AS TOLD TO A CHILD by ROBERT FROST THE SEVEN ARTS by ROBERT FROST MATERNITY by GEORGIA DOUGLAS JOHNSON ON A TUFT OF GRASS by EMMA LAZARUS AUTUMN SONG by KATHERINE MANSFIELD |