Page 3 - RAIN ON THE ROOF- MODULE

Stanza 2

Every tinkle on the shingles
Has an echo in the heart;
And a thousand dreamy fancies
Into busy being start,
And a thousand recollections
Weave their air-threads into woof,
As I listen to the patter
Of the rain upon the roof.

tinkle: short, light ringing sound
shingles: rectangular wooden tiles used on roofs
echo: repeated sound
woof: weft, i.es the thread woven across the loom
patter: sound of raindrops falling on the roof
‘busy being’ refers to human beings and here, the poet is referring to himself

The poet is expressing his feelings when he hearsthe raindrops falling on the roof top of his
house. He says that every tinkle on the shingles has an echo in the heart. Whenever he hears
rain falling on the roof top, the soundrepeats in his heart and in his dreams, he has many
different, fanciful imaginations. He adds that this sound of the rain falling on the roof top
creates many new different dreams in his mind. He recollects many memories of the
pastwhich come back into his mind as dreams. So, he says that as he listens to the patter of
the rain upon the roof, he has many new dreams in his mind and the memories of the past
come in the form of dreams.

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