Poems (Botta)/Little Red Riding Hood

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For works with similar titles, see Little Red Riding Hood.

New York: G. P. Putnam and Company, pages 183–184

LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD.

“Heaven lies about us in our infancy.”


Sweet child of fairy land! since first
I dwelt, with tearful eye,
Upon the page that tells thy tale,
Long years have glided by.

Then, in thy fabled history,
No marvel could I see;
For then the worlds of thought and sense
Were fairy lands to me.

The fields and meadows were as bright
As those where thou didst stray;—
And gaily through their tangled flowers,
Like thee I took my way.

And while I walked that sunny path,
Nor doubt nor fear was mine;
For childhood’s trustfulness and faith
Are ever strong, like thine.

Alas! that coming years should throw
Dark shadows o’er our way;
And leave us with this aching sense
Of glory passed away.