Childhood 11

 Childhood 

                                                                                By Markus Natten 

When did my childhood go? 

Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,

 Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven,

 Could not be found in Geography, 

And therefore could not be, 

Was that the day! When did my childhood go?

 Was it the time I realised that adults were not all they seemed to be, 

They talked of love and preached of love,

 But did not act so lovingly, Was that the day! 

When did my childhood go?

 Was it when I found my mind was really mine, 

To use whichever way I choose, 

Producing thoughts that were not those of other people

 But my own, and mine alone Was that the day!

 Where did my childhood go?

 It went to some forgotten place, 

That’s hidden in an infant’s face, 

That’s all I know

Childhood 

By Markus Natten

Stanza 1:

When did my childhood go?
The poet is asking: When did I stop being a child?

Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
Maybe it happened when I turned 12 — is that when my childhood ended?

Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven,
Could not be found in Geography,
And therefore could not be,
As a child, I believed heaven and hell were real places.
But one day, I looked in my Geography book and they weren’t there.
Then I thought — maybe they aren’t real.
That’s when I lost some of my childhood beliefs.

Was that the day!
The poet wonders: Was this the moment I grew up a little?

Stanza 2:

When did my childhood go?
He repeats the question: When exactly did I lose my childhood?

Was it the time I realised that adults were not all they seemed to be,
As a child, I thought adults were always right and good.
But then I saw they are not perfect.

They talked of love and preached of love,
But did not act so lovingly,
Adults say we should love others, but they don’t always show love in their actions.
This made me confused and sad. It felt like they didn’t practice what they taught.

Was that the day!
He wonders again: Did I lose my childhood when I saw this truth?

Stanza 3:

When did my childhood go?
He is still trying to find the moment when childhood ended.

Was it when I found my mind was really mine,
To use whichever way I choose,
I realized I could think for myself.
I didn’t always have to believe what others told me.

Producing thoughts that were not those of other people
But my own, and mine alone
My thoughts were no longer copied from adults.
They were my own ideas.
This is an important step in growing up.

Was that the day!
Again, he asks: Was that when I stopped being a child?

Final Stanza:

Where did my childhood go?
Now he wonders: If childhood is gone, where did it go?

It went to some forgotten place,
Maybe it went to a place we can't see or remember clearly anymore.

That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
Childhood still lives in the face of little children.
When I see a baby or a small child, I see the same innocence I once had.

That’s all I know
The poet ends by saying: I don’t know exactly when or where my childhood went — but I know it’s gone.

Poem: “Childhood” by Markus Natten

Central Idea:

The poem “Childhood” is about the poet’s search for the moment when he stopped being a child and became an adult. He wonders when he lost his innocence and simple faith. As he grows up, he realizes that people are not always truthful, religion can be confusing, and adults are not as good as they seem. The poem shows how childhood is a time of innocence, honesty, and simplicity, and how maturity brings awareness and sometimes disappointment.

Summary 

The poet, Markus Natten, reflects deeply on the time when he lost his childhood. He tries to find out the exact moment when his innocent thoughts and pure heart changed into maturity and understanding.

He thinks it might have been when he realized that grown-ups are not always what they appear to be. They talk about love and goodness, but their actions often don’t match their words. This made him lose faith in adults.

He also feels that perhaps he lost his childhood when he understood that heaven and hell are not real places in the sky, but only ideas created by people. It was the time when he started thinking logically and questioning what he had been told.

Finally, he feels that childhood ended when he became aware of his individuality — that he was a separate person with his own thoughts and ideas. He realizes that childhood does not disappear completely; it hides in the face of an innocent child.

The poem expresses the poet’s longing for the purity and innocence of childhood that can never return once it’s gone.

Reference to Context Questions & Answers

Poem: Childhood — Markus Natten

Extract 1

“When did my childhood go?
Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
Was it the time I realized that Hell and Heaven
Could not be found in Geography,
And therefore could not be,
Was that the day!”

Q1. What idea does the poet question here?
Ans: The poet questions the idea that heaven and hell are real physical places. He realizes they cannot be found in Geography books, so they may not exist.

Q2. What does “ceased to be eleven” suggest?
Ans: It suggests that the poet is entering a new stage of life — from childhood to teenage — and becoming more mature.

Q3. What change in thinking does this extract show?
Ans: It shows the poet’s growing logical and scientific thinking. He starts questioning beliefs blindly taught to him.

Q4. What does the poet mean by “Was that the day!”?
Ans: He wonders whether that realization was the exact moment his childhood ended.

Extract 2

“When did my childhood go?
Was it the time I realized that adults were not all they seemed to be,
They talked of love and preached of love,
But did not act so lovingly,
Was that the day!”

Q1. What hypocrisy of adults does the poet mention?
Ans: Adults preach about love and goodness, but they do not follow these values in real life.

Q2. What does the poet lose because of adults’ behavior?
Ans: He loses trust and innocence because he learns that adults pretend and are not always truthful.

Q3. What theme is highlighted in this extract?
Ans: Theme of loss of innocence and realization of truth about adult behavior.

Q4. What stage of life does this realization indicate?
Ans: It indicates the poet’s growing maturity and emotional development.

Extract 3

“When did my childhood go?
Was it when I found my mind was really mine,
To use whichever way I choose,
Producing thoughts that were not those of other people,
But my own, and mine alone,
Was that the day!”

Q1. What does the poet discover here?
Ans: The poet discovers that he has his own independent thoughts and can make decisions by himself.

Q2. Which stage of growth is shown?
Ans: Intellectual growth — realizing one’s individuality.

Q3. What does “mine alone” signify?
Ans: It signifies the personal identity and self-awareness he develops while growing up.

Extract 4

“Where did my childhood go?
It went to some forgotten place,
That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
That’s all I know.”

Q1. What does the poet feel about childhood?
Ans: That childhood never returns. It gets lost in time.

Q2. Where does the poet find innocence?
Ans: In the face of a small child — symbol of purity and simplicity.

Q3. What is the tone of this stanza?
Ans: Nostalgic and reflective — the poet misses the innocence of childhood.

Figures of Speech:

Figure of Speech	Example	Explanation
Repetition	“When did my childhood go?”	The line is repeated to emphasize the poet’s confusion and search for the answer.
Alliteration	“Was it the time I realized that adults were not all they seemed to be”	Repetition of the consonant sound ‘w’ and ‘s’ gives rhythm.
Metaphor	“It went to some forgotten place”	Childhood is compared to something that can go or be lost.
Imagery	“That’s hidden in an infant’s face”	Creates a visual image of innocence and purity.
Rhetorical Question	“Was that the day?”	The poet asks questions not for answers, but to express his feelings and thoughts.

Question and Answers

Q1. What is the poet trying to discover in the poem?
Ans: The poet is trying to discover when he lost his childhood — the time when he stopped being innocent and started understanding the realities of life.

Q2. According to the poet, how do adults differ from children?
Ans: Adults often say good things like “love others,” but they don’t always follow what they say. Children, on the other hand, are innocent and honest. This difference makes the poet lose his faith in adults.

Q3. What realization marks the end of childhood in the poem?
Ans: The realization that the poet’s mind is his own — that he can think independently — marks the end of his childhood.

Q4. What does the poet mean by “It went to some forgotten place”?
Ans: It means that childhood is lost forever and can never return. It remains only as a memory hidden in the face of a little child.

Q5. What does the poet find hidden in an infant’s face?
Ans: The poet finds innocence, purity, and simplicity hidden in an infant’s face — the true signs of childhood.

6. What message does the poem “Childhood” convey?
The poem “Childhood” tells us that childhood is a time of innocence, faith, and simplicity. As we grow up, we start thinking logically and lose that pure and honest way of seeing the world. The poet feels sad about losing his childhood innocence.

7. What does the poet mean by the line “When did my childhood go?”
By this line, the poet wonders when he lost his childhood innocence and belief in goodness. He feels that growing up has taken away his simple and carefree nature. It shows his sadness at losing the purity and joy of childhood.