When I bring to you colour’d toys

When I bring to you colour'd toys, my child,

I understand why there is such a play of colours

On clouds, on water, and why flow'rs are painted in tints:

When I give colour'd toys to you, my child.

When I sing to make you dance,

I truly know why there is music in leaves,

And why waves send their chorus of voices

To the heart of the listening earth:

When I sing to make you dance.

When I bring sweet things to your greedy hands,

I know why there is honey in the cup of the flower

And why fruits are secretly filled with sweet juice:

When I bring sweet things to your greedy hands.

When I kiss your face to make you smile, my darling,

I surely understand what pleasure streams

from the sky in morning light, and what delight

that is that is which the summer breeze

brings to my body - when I kiss you to make you smile.