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Helpstone Church-Yard.

By John Clare

Topics: classic

What makes me love thee now, thou dreary scene,     And see in each swell'd heap a peaceful bed?     I well remember that the time has been,     To walk a church-yard when I us'd to dread;     And shudder'd, as I read upon the stone     Of well-known friends and next-door-neighbours gone.     But then I knew no cloudy cares of life,     Where ne'er a sunbeam comes to light me thorough;     A stranger then to this world's storms and strife,     Where ne'er a charm is met to lull my sorrow:     I then was blest, and had not eyes to see     Life's future change, and Fate's severe to-morrow;     When all those ills and pains should compass me,     With no hope left but what I meet in thee.

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"What makes me love thee now, thou dreary scene,..."

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Author:John Clare

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"The Text is taken from Percy's Reliques (1765), vol. i. p. 71, 'given from two MS. copies, transmitted from Scotland.' Herd had a very similar bal"

John Clare

About John Clare

John Clare (1793–1864) was an English poet known as the "peasant poet" for his humble origins. His nature poetry—including "I Am" and "Badger"—captures the English countryside with extraordinary precision and emotional honesty, and he is now recognized as one of the finest nature poets in the language.

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