A Silly Song ~ A Poem by Dinah Maria Mulock

When Life Feels Like Nonsense, Maybe That’s the Point

Not all poetry needs to wear a suit and tie—some just want to skip barefoot through the absurd. “Silly Song” dares us to laugh, question, and wonder: is there wisdom in whimsy?

A Silly Song

Dinah Maria Mulock

“O HEART, my heart!” she said, and heard
His mate the blackbird calling,
While through the sheen of the garden green
May rain was softly falling,–
Aye softly, softly falling.

The buttercups across the field
Made sunshine rifts of splendor:
The round snow-bud of the thorn in the wood
Peeped through its leefage tender,
As the rain came softly falling.

“O heart, my heart!” she said and smiled,
“There’s not a tree of the valley,
Or a leaf I wis which the rain’s soft kiss
Freshens in yonder alley,
Where the drops keep ever falling,–

“There’s not a foolish flower i’ the grass,
Or bird through the woodland calling,
So glad again of the coming of rain
As I of these tears now falling,–
These happy tears down falling.”

Source

❓ Three Reflective Questions:

1. Is the poem truly nonsensical—or is it playfully pointing out something true about life?
2. Why do we often dismiss silly things as unimportant or without value?
3. What’s one area of your life that might benefit from a little more lightness?

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💬 Poignant Reflection:

Sometimes we need poems that don’t preach or push—they just play. “Silly Song” reminds us that even nonsense can serve as a mirror. In a world obsessed with meaning, maybe the bravest thing we can do is laugh, loosen up, and let the questions hang uncomfortably unanswered—for a moment, anyway.