Comment 4 of 15, added on May 13th, 2005 at 12:47 AM.

This poem is about a man who has turned 30, and goes out to have a walk, reflecting on life. He reflects about how his inner child is now gone. "Year to heaven" could possibly mean that he beliefs it is his thirtieth year in his journey to heaven. He first describes the harbour and whe woods, which are by his house. In the shore there is a heron, which is a black, elegant bird with long, thin legs. He describes the shore as "heron priested" probably meaning that it is nicer, just with the presence of the heron. The water is praying(personification). This is probably because of the heron, because as a priest has to do with religion, the water is "praying". Then he talks about other birds, "seagull and rook". After describing the scene, the man goes out of his house, the town "still sleeping"(personification). The town is not really sleeping, it is the people in it.
In the next stanza, we realize that, indeed, it is his birthday. He describes the trees being "winged". This gives an impression that the trees are alive, but actually they are not; they are probably being blown by the wind, and moving, so they look as though they are flying. He says "trees flying my name". Dylan, the name of the author, is welsh, and means tide or sea, so probably "flying my name" means that they are being blown by the tide. Then, he keeps on walking "in a shower of all my days". This means that it is raining hard. The tide rises, and the heron dives into the water. Then, he turned("I took the road over the border") and the gates closed behind him, ast the people awoke.
In this stanza he talks about a "springful of larks in a rolling cloud". Larks are birds, so this probably means that there is a large quantity of birds, flying all clusteres todether, so it looks like a cloud of birds which is "rolling", because the birds are moving. At the roadside there are "bushes brimming with whistling blackbirds". This means that there is all along the roadside a line of bushes, with birds singing. It is sunny. He is on the "hil's shoulder", which means that he is at the top of the hill. He looks back, and sees the wood below him, with the "rain wringing", meaning that the rain is making a sound.
In the next stanza, he says that he pursued his birthday


Sam from New Zealand

Comment 2 of 15, added on January 27th, 2005 at 1:35 PM.

This poem is totally boring. Mr. Thomas must have been under serious drugs while he wrote this

Navi from United Kingdom