Going downhill on a bicycle

With lifted feet, hands still;

Iam poised, and down the hill
Dart; with heedful mind;
The air goes by in a wind.
Swifter and yet more swift,
Till the heart with a mighty lift
Makes the lungs laugh, the throat cry:–
‘O bird, see, see bird, I fly.
Is this , is this your joy?
For a golden moment share your feathery life in air!
                                              – Henry Charles Breeching –
Theme of the Poem:
A boy who riding a bicycle is equated his activity with flying. He compares his hill riding
with a imaginary bird.
From the poem answer the following questions:
1. Is the boy afraid that he might fall off the bicycle?
No, the boy doesn?t have the fear of falling.
2. What does he feel when he is on it?
When going downhill on the bicycle, he feels the wind passing by.
3. Is he a rash rider? How do we know he is or isn?t?
No, he is not a rash rider. As he darted downhill, he rode with a careful mind.
4. How do you know that the rider is a boy?
He went cycling downhill faster and faster with as excited heart and laughter
filled lungs till he felt like a bird. It is also mentioned in the last lines of the poem.
5. What does the boy wish for sometimes?
The boy wished to compete with the bird in the sky. He felt that it was a golden moment
for him.
6. Hills, boy, laugh, down, joy, life.
Give the rhyming words.
Joy – boy,
Laugh – life.
7. How was the boy poised?
He stood with lifted feet and hand still on the bars to balance.
8. When did the air change into a wind for him?
When he cycled downhill very swiftly the air passed by as wind.
9. How does the boy feel as? What did he compare himself to?
He felt very excited and wanted to shout out to the birds. He compared himself
to a bird.