Preface

Sometimes when I remember a relative that I have been fond of,
or a strange incident of the past,
I wander here and there
till I have somebody to talk to.
Presently I notice that my listener is bored;
but now that I have written it out,
I may even begin to forget it all.
In any case,
because one can
always close a book,
my friend
need not be bored.
I have changed nothing
to my knowledge;
and yet it must be
that I have changed many things
without my knowledge;
for I am writing after many years
and have consulted neither friend,
nor letter, nor old newspaper,
and describe what comes
oftenest into my memory.
I say this fearing
that some surviving
friend of my youth
may remember something
in a different shape
and be offended
with my book.

W.B. Yeats
Christmas Day, 1914

the preface and painting of Yeats and sketch of Gonne
are from WB Yeats Autobiographies, Memories and Reflections

the graphic of the Rose and the Railway is hand drawn,
while the roses are collaged with the graphic of Yeats and Gonne