--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'd like to go by climbing a birch tree~…" description: "\"I'd like to go by climbing a birch tree~ And climb black branches up a snow-white trunk Toward heaven, till the tree could bear no more, But dipped its..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/097/robert-frost-371_be-good_i-d-like-to-go-by-climbing-a-birch-tree_450474.jpg" --- # I'd like to go by climbing a birch tree~ And climb black… ![“I'd like to go by climbing a birch tree~ And climb black branches up a snow-white trunk Toward heaven, till the tree could bear no more, But dipped its top and set me down again. That would be good both going and coming back. One could do worse than be a swinger of birches.” quote by Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/097/robert-frost-371_be-good_i-d-like-to-go-by-climbing-a-birch-tree_450474.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/097/robert-frost-371_be-good_i-d-like-to-go-by-climbing-a-birch-tree_450474.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/097/robert-frost-371_be-good_i-d-like-to-go-by-climbing-a-birch-tree_450474.jpg) > “I'd like to go by climbing a birch tree~ And climb black branches up a snow-white trunk Toward heaven, till the tree could bear no more, But dipped its top and set me down again. That would be good both going and coming back. One could do worse than be a swinger of birches.” [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker longs for a simple, restorative escape from life's burdens, using the image of swinging on birches. **In simple terms:** Desire for a brief, carefree retreat. Key Takeaway Seek moments of playful release. Themes nature escape nostalgia Mood contemplative hopeful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - stressful work - urban life - emotional fatigue Key Concepts simplicity renewal childhood wonder Questions to Reflect On - When have you needed a mental reset? - How can playfulness improve resilience? A Different Perspective Escapism may avoid confronting real issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bears/) [Climbing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climbing/) [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snow/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) [Trees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trees/) ## Related quotes > [One will never again look at a birch tree, after the Robert Frost poem, in exactly the same way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-muldoon/one-will-never-again-look-at-a-birch-tree-after-the-robert-frost-poem/) [Paul Muldoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-muldoon/) > [“ Outside, a birch tree bends from the weight of the snow. it'll spring back up once the snow melts, back to its normal,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-jones/outside-a-birch-tree-bends-from-the-weight-of-the-snow-it-ll-spring/) [Carrie Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-jones/) > [One could do worse than be a swinger of birches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/one-could-do-worse-than-be-a-swinger-of-birches/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [When I see birches bend to left and right... I like to think some boy's been swinging them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/when-i-see-birches-bend-to-left-and-right-i-like-to-think-some-boy-s/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [So was I once myself a swinger of birches. And so I dream of going back to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/so-was-i-once-myself-a-swinger-of-birches-and-so-i-dream-of-going/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [“Sometimes I spend all day trying to count the leaves on a single tree. To do this I have to climb branch by branch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/sometimes-i-spend-all-day-trying-to-count-the-leaves-on-a-single-tree-2/) [Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/) > [Life Is Like A Tree Once You Climb Up You'l One Day Come Down, So Don't Under-look Others Because You're Living A Better Life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ocham-stanley/life-is-like-a-tree-once-you-climb-up-you-l-one-day-come-down-so-don/) Ocham Stanley > [I have so many children. Half of mine are the ones that just must climb the tree, must climb the mountain, must get dirty,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelina-jolie/i-have-so-many-children-half-of-mine-are-the-ones-that-just-must/) [Angelina Jolie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelina-jolie/) > [I've got an image of me at the bottom of my garden sitting under my silver birch tree reading, while everyone else had gone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geri-halliwell/i-ve-got-an-image-of-me-at-the-bottom-of-my-garden-sitting-under-my/) [Geri Halliwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geri-halliwell/) > [“Outside a sparrow was swaying back and forth on the branch of a birch tree. A tiny drop fell away from beneath his tail.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vasily-aksyonov/outside-a-sparrow-was-swaying-back-and-forth-on-the-branch-of-a-birch/) Vasily Aksyonov > [“And so, they sat next to a birch tree, watching the butterflies spin around them. Linetta leaned back, her dark hair falling against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-marinello-sweeney/and-so-they-sat-next-to-a-birch-tree-watching-the-butterflies-spin/) [Gina Marinello-Sweeney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-marinello-sweeney/) > [I wish you were that birch rising from the clump behind you, and I the gray oak alongside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-hall/i-wish-you-were-that-birch-rising-from-the-clump-behind-you-and-i-the/) [Donald Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-hall/) > [“If I were good the way my dad is good, then I wouldn't be filling up these pages. They would be blank, the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-hubbard/if-i-were-good-the-way-my-dad-is-good-then-i-wouldn-t-be-filling-up/) [Jenny Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-hubbard/) > [I'm all for bringing back the birch, but only between consenting adults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-m-all-for-bringing-back-the-birch-but-only-between-consenting-adults/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [If only we could touch the things of this world at their center, if we could only hear tiny leaves of birch struggling toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-hamill/if-only-we-could-touch-the-things-of-this-world-at-their-center-if-we/) [Sam Hamill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-hamill/) ## More by Robert Frost > [The brain is a wonderful organ. It starts working when you get up in the morning, and doesn't stop until you get to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-brain-is-a-wonderful-organ-it-starts-working-when-you-get-up-in/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [When I see birches bend to left and right... I like to think some boy's been swinging them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/when-i-see-birches-bend-to-left-and-right-i-like-to-think-some-boy-s/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [“The promising young poets, the hopefuls? I'd name Richard Wilbur, Peter Viereck, Karl Shapiro, Elizabeth Bishop, Robert Lowell, John Ciardi...Leonard Bacon...but it is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-promising-young-poets-the-hopefuls-i-d-name-richard-wilbur-peter/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [Lord, I have loved Your sky, Be it said against or for me, Have loved it clear and high, Or low and stormy...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/lord-i-have-loved-your-sky-be-it-said-against-or-for-me-have-loved-it/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [Let him that is without stone among you cast the first thing he can lay his hands on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/let-him-that-is-without-stone-among-you-cast-the-first-thing-he-can/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [It is only a moment here and a moment there that the greatest writer has. Some cognizance of the fact must be taken in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/it-is-only-a-moment-here-and-a-moment-there-that-the-greatest-writer/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [And of course there must be something wrong In wanting to silence any song.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/and-of-course-there-must-be-something-wrong-in-wanting-to-silence-any/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [There are two kinds of teachers: the kind that fill you with so much quail shot that you can't move, and the kind that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/there-are-two-kinds-of-teachers-the-kind-that-fill-you-with-so-much/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [The rose is a rose, And was always a rose. But now the theory goes That the apple's a rose, And the pear is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-rose-is-a-rose-and-was-always-a-rose-but-now-the-theory-goes-that/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [Forgive, O Lord, my little jokes on Thee, and I'll forgive Thy great big joke on me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/forgive-o-lord-my-little-jokes-on-thee-and-i-ll-forgive-thy-great-big/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [What an exciting age it is we live in With all this talk about the hope of youth And nothing made of youth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/what-an-exciting-age-it-is-we-live-in-with-all-this-talk-about-the/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [The footpath down to the well is healed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-footpath-down-to-the-well-is-healed/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [There is the fear that we shan't prove worthy in the eyes of someone who knows us at least as well as we know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/there-is-the-fear-that-we-shan-t-prove-worthy-in-the-eyes-of-someone/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [It's God - I recognised him from Blake's picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/it-s-god-i-recognised-him-from-blake-s-picture/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [Create and stir other people to create.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/create-and-stir-other-people-to-create/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) [Explore all 624 Robert Frost quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) ## More Be good quotes > [Passion is what you need to be good, an unforgiving passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-easton/passion-is-what-you-need-to-be-good-an-unforgiving-passion/) [David Easton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-easton/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [Peace is the result of love, and if love were easy we'd all be good at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colman-mccarthy/peace-is-the-result-of-love-and-if-love-were-easy-we-d-all-be-good-at/) [Colman McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colman-mccarthy/) > [Therefore, I see whatever exists as good, death is to me like life, sin like holiness, wisdom like foolishness, everything has to be as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/therefore-i-see-whatever-exists-as-good-death-is-to-me-like-life-sin/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Most of us want to live in harmony and peace and be good to others. Right now, however, the world is in a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hany-abu-assad/most-of-us-want-to-live-in-harmony-and-peace-and-be-good-to-others/) [Hany Abu-Assad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hany-abu-assad/) > [I've never had any desire to be good. I don't like goodness particularly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanif-kureishi/i-ve-never-had-any-desire-to-be-good-i-don-t-like-goodness/) [Hanif Kureishi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanif-kureishi/) > [To become a classical ballerina, you have to move to New York when you're 12 or 11 and that becomes your life. I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-garner/to-become-a-classical-ballerina-you-have-to-move-to-new-york-when-you/) [Jennifer Garner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-garner/) > [The producers felt that 24 would be good for the audience, to really get to know who these 12 and 12 are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-abdul/the-producers-felt-that-24-would-be-good-for-the-audience-to-really/) [Paula Abdul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-abdul/) > [All will concede that in order to have good neighbors, we must also be good neighbors. That applies in every field of human endeavor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/all-will-concede-that-in-order-to-have-good-neighbors-we-must-also-be/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [Everybody wants to be good, but not many are prepared to make the sacrifices it takes to be great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-arden/everybody-wants-to-be-good-but-not-many-are-prepared-to-make-the/) [Paul Arden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-arden/) > [There's such cultural rot taking place, such a disintegration throughout our culture. Values, morality, you name it. Standards have been relaxed, and people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/there-s-such-cultural-rot-taking-place-such-a-disintegration/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The difference in being good at some thing and being great at something is usually found in the little things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-anderson/the-difference-in-being-good-at-some-thing-and-being-great-at/) Randy Anderson > [It doesn't matter if your lead character is good or bad. He just has to be interesting, and he has to be good at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chase/it-doesn-t-matter-if-your-lead-character-is-good-or-bad-he-just-has/) [David Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chase/) > [What's good for the very rich might not be good for anybody but them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/what-s-good-for-the-very-rich-might-not-be-good-for-anybody-but-them/) [Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/) > [“Living in the middle of beauty like this, we've no call to have puny ideas about God. Why do you suppose His world is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-marshall/living-in-the-middle-of-beauty-like-this-we-ve-no-call-to-have-puny/) [Catherine Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-marshall/) Browse all 1,747 Be good quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'd like to go by climbing a birch tree~ And climb black branches up a snow-white trunk Toward heaven, till the tree could bear no more, But dipped its top and set me down again. That would be good both going and coming back. 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