Most of you must have experienced that when we grow up, we often think of pleasant moments spent during our childhood and early youth. We also often remember with a pleasant thought certain small incidents and things that gave us a lot of happiness during our early years. The poem “An Old Man Dreams” written by an unknown poet depicts a similar situation and experience.
This poem has two stanzas. It describes the thoughts of an old man sitting by the fire and thinking of what he did when he was a little child and also of the things that gave him happiness as he grew a bit older. The old man in this poem thinks of his early walks as a child and also of his feeling of delight when he heard a thunder storm or the sweet sound of a bird. Linnet is the name of a bird. He also thinks of the short poems which children normally recite.
Such thoughts lead him to his later years as a child when he started taking interest in sports such as cricket. From the description in the poem it is clear that the old man enjoyed cricket a lot, even when he is old he still wishes to once again hear the sweet sound of the bat and the ball.
In the second stanza of the poem we see the old man thinking of some incidents related to his successes as a cricket player when he was a bit grown up. You must have experienced that such memories spontaneously flash in our minds when we think of our early years. So the old man in this poem thinks of how he scored runs when none else could withstand the balling of the opposite side, and how he firmly stood at the crease and not only saved his wicket but also won the match.
Many of you will agree that the experience described in the poem is a very familiar experience. Even when you are not very old, many of you must have derived the kind of happiness which the old man feels thinking of his early days.