Stop

Walking down Bishopsgate at lunchtime today, I happened to look up and curse the sky for how grey the weather was. Little did I know that in my exasperated gaze, I would catch a glimpse of one of the most beautiful buildings in London. It made me wonder... the programmed lives that we live from home to work to home, how often do we stop for a minute to observe and cherish?

WHAT is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?

No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep and cows:

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass:

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night:

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance:

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began?

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

-- W. H. Davies

*Thanks for the poem Rish!