Well, World, you have kept faith with me, <br />Kept faith with me; <br />Upon the whole you have proved to be <br />Much as you said you were. <br />Since as a child I used to lie <br />Upon the leaze and watch the sky, <br />Never, I own, expected I <br />That life would all be fair. <br /> <br />'Twas then you said, and since have said, <br />Times since have said, <br />In that mysterious voice you shed <br />From clouds and hills around: <br />"Many have loved me desperately, <br />Many with smooth serenity, <br />While some have shown contempt of me <br />Till they dropped underground. <br /> <br />"I do not promise overmuch, <br />Child; overmuch; <br />Just neutral-tinted haps and such," <br />You said to minds like mine. <br />Wise warning for your credit's sake! <br />Which I for one failed not to take, <br />And hence could stem such strain and ache <br />As each year might assign.<br /><br />Thomas Hardy<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/he-never-expected-much/
