Kissing Time by Eugene Field (1894)
The speaker delights in the lively beauty of morning, when larks, bees, summer winds, fields, and floods seem full of song and happiness. At such moments, the speaker wakes a beloved darling because it is “kissing time.” As days pass like golden fancies, each brings sweetness, especially when the child climbs into the speaker’s lap to announce that it is time for kisses. Even if he wanders or lingers in play, he eventually remembers and hurries back, for it is always time to kiss again.
By Eugene Field · First published 1894 · Genre: Children's Poetry, Lyric Poetry, Nonsense Verse · 276 words
First lines
'Tis when the lark goes soaring / And the bee is at the bud, / When lightly dancing zephyrs / Sing over field and flood; / When all sweet things in nature / Seem joyfully achime -- / 'Tis then I wake my darling, / For it is kissing time!
Go, pretty lark, a-soaring, / And suck your sweets, O bee; / Sing, O ye winds of summer, / Your songs to mine and me; / For with your song and rapture / Cometh the moment when / It's half-past kissing time / And time to kiss again!
So -- so the days go fleeting / Like golden fancies free, / And every day that cometh / Is full of sweets for me; / And sweetest are those moments / My darling comes to climb / Into my lap to mind me / That it is kissing time.
Similar titles
- Little Oh Dear English by Eugene Field
- Summer Sun by Robert Louis Stevenson
- A Good Boy by Robert Louis Stevenson
- Come My Little Children Here Are Songs For You by Robert Louis Stevenson
- Three Years Old by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
- Nest Eggs by Robert Louis Stevenson
Genres
- Children's Poetry — The poem centers on a small child affectionately reminding the speaker that it is 'kissing time,' using playful language, simple rhythms, and a warm domestic viewpoint suited to children's verse.
- Lyric Poetry — It is a short, musical, emotion-driven poem structured in lyrical stanzas and refrains, emphasizing mood and affectionate feeling rather than narrative development.
- Nonsense Verse — The recurring comic idea of scheduled 'kissing time,' including 'half-past kissing time,' gives the poem a whimsical, playful character associated with light nonsense verse.
- Family Poetry — The speaker's tender relationship with a darling child, who climbs into the speaker's lap for kisses, makes parental and family affection its central subject.
Tags
children's poetry · lyric poem · parental affection · childhood · kisses · morning · summer · nature · larks · bees · zephyrs · fields and floods
What this Textopian page supports
Kissing Time is listed on Textopian as a poem by Eugene Field, dated 1894 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Eugene Field
- Date: 1894 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Children's Poetry, Lyric Poetry, Nonsense Verse, Family Poetry, Nature Poetry
- Length: 276 words
- Structure: 1 section, 4 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Difficult (10th-12th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for Kissing Time by Eugene Field
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
- Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph