I wander lonely as a cloud

I wander'd lonely as a cloud

You , the reader might think i am starting an essay or trying to explain these famous lines of "Daffodils" by Wordsworth. Let me assure you , I have no intention of plunging into a literary discussion of the lines. But my curious mind is always intrigued by the irony of this infamous line with regard to our lives.

When i was a kid, i often recited the line as "I wander'd as a lonely cloud". My teacher corrected me now and again but i always made the same mistake. At that point of time i lacked the capability of understanding the difference between "a lonely cloud" and "lonely as a cloud". At that point of time it portrayed a beautiful image of a lonely cloud floating among the hills and valleys. I always used to say ..."I wanna travel like a lonely cloud over the fields of Daffodils.....".This beautiful picture has always stayed with me.This line has always been a part of my life.

Are we like "lonely cloud...." wandering among the "hills and vales...." of our life ? This is what i questioned myself again and again. "Are we really lonely???".

In a way, we are. We are always surrounded by our near and dear ones.Will it be unfair if we say we are lonely?Maybe not.We are never alone in this universe.There's always someone to accompany us each time. But then every individual walks the road of life alone. He has loved ones to accompany him but he is lonely. There seems to be a very fine difference when we say "I am lonely" and "I am alone". We are not alone we travel alone. That makes us wander lonely in our life.We may take advise from people at the crossroads of our life but we walk the road alone.Even in a crowd we are lonely. A cloud floats among hills and vales , it mayor may not be accompanied by others , but it travels alone. Its lonely journey is synonymous to our journey of life.Somehow this single line tells the story of every person.