Playthings

by Rabindranath Tagore

Child, how happy you are sitting in the dust, playing with a broken twig all the morning.

　　I smile at your play with that little bit of a broken twig.

　　I am busy with my accounts, adding up figures by the hour.

　　Perhaps you glance at me and think, "What a stupid game to spoil your morning with!"

　　Child, I have forgotten the art of being absorbed in sticks and mud-pies.

　　I seek out costly playthings, and gather lumps of gold and silver.

　　With whatever you find you create your glad games, I spend both my time and my strength over things I never can obtain.

　　In my frail canoe I struggle to cross the sea of desire, and forget that I too am playing a game.