The Wind

I saw you toss the kites on high And blow the birds about the sky; And all around I heard you pass, Like ladies' skirts across the grass— O wind, a-blowing all day long, O wind, that sings so loud a song!

I saw the different things you did, But always you yourself you hid. I felt you push, I heard you call, I could not see yourself at all— O wind, a-blowing all day long, O wind, that sings so loud a song!

O you that are so strong and cold, O blower, are you young or old? Are you a beast of field and tree, Or just a stronger child than me? O wind, a-blowing all day long, O wind, that sings so loud a song!

From The Wind by Robert Louis Stevenson (1885). Public domain.

Check your understanding

1. What does the speaker say the wind sounds like when it passes over the grass?

Like birds singing in the skyLike ladies' skirts across the grassLike a strong and cold beastLike a child calling out

2. What is the main mystery about the wind for the speaker?

Why it blows the birds about the skyHow it tosses the kites so highWhy it can be felt and heard but never seenWhere it goes when the day is over

3. The speaker asks if the wind is a 'beast of field and tree' or 'just a stronger child than me.' Why do you think the speaker imagines the wind as a beast or a child?

4. At the end of every stanza, the speaker repeats the lines, 'O wind, a-blowing all day long, / O wind, that sings so loud a song!' How does repeating these lines make you feel about the wind?

5. The speaker notices that the wind does many things but always hides. Describe a time when you felt the wind doing something but could not see it. How did it feel?