Text of the Poem

My heart leaps up when I behold
A rainbow in the sky:
So was it when my life began,
So is it now I am a man,
So be it when I shall grow old
Or let me die!
The child is father of the man:
And I could wish my days to be
Bound each to each by natural piety

Footnotes

  1. Wordsworth's choice here could have two interpretations. "Natural piety" could mean a devotion to Nature itself, or it could mean a devotion that is not only instinctive, but it is also part of one's nature.

    — Wesley, Owl Eyes Editor