#JohnClare finding beauty everywhere…
Then village childern seeking after toys
Their clownish hearts & ever heedless eyes
Find nought in nature they as wealth can prize
With them self interest & the thoughts of gain
Are natures beautys all beside are vain
But he the man of science & of taste
Sees wealth far richer in the worthless waste
Where bits of lichen & a sprig of moss
Will all the raptures of his mind engross
(lines 102-110)
As a teacher, I find children much more appreciative of the beauty and science of nature than the average adult. Adults approach nature in a more utilitarian way and usually want to know what it can do for them. If it’s nothing they value then they don’t care about it.
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