Notes For West Bengal Students

ASLEEP IN THE VALLEY A small green valley where a slow stream flows And leaves long strands of silver on the bright Grass; from the mountaintop stream the Sun's Rays; fill the hollow full of light. A soldier, very young, lies open-mouthed, A pillow made of fern beneath his head, Asleep; stretched in the heavy undergrowth, Pale in his warm, green, sun-soaked bed. His feet among the flowers, he sleeps. His smile Is like an infant's - gentle, without guile. Ah, Nature, keep him warm; he may catch cold. The humming insects don't disturb his rest; He sleeps in sunlight, one hand on his breast; At peace. In his side there are two red holes. There is a small green valley where a river chants, wildly, catching rags of silver on the water plants; Where the sun shines from the proud hill’s height, There is a small valley brimming with the sunlight. A young soldier sleeps, open-mouthed, bare head, His nape by the cool watercress of the river bed. Asleep; under the sky, upon the grass,...