Down by the Salley gardens
my love and I did meet
She passed the Salley gardens
with little snow white feet.
She bid me me take love easy
as the leaves grow on the tree
But I being young and foolish
with her did not agree.
In a field by the river
my love and I did stand
And on my leaning shoulder
she laid her snow white hand.
She bid me take life easy
as the grass grows on the weirs
But I was young and foolish
and now am full of tears.
***
William Butler Yeats, Down by the Salley Gardens (1889)
Op muziek van Benjamin Britten (1943)
