In these four short lines, someone looks up at the evening sky and feels it has been arranged personally for them. The “Hand” that placed a new moon on the hill and hung the night with stars is blessed—thanked and praised. The stars become white festoons, looped from the corners of the world, as if the whole sky were festive decoration, a welcome prepared in advance. The mood is one of quiet wonder and gratitude, almost childlike in its delight. There is no distance or analysis, only the sense of receiving a gift. The speaker feels singled out, not in a self-important way, but with amazed tenderness, as if the universe has paused to make a beautiful entrance just for them.
The Welcome — Summary
Blessed the Hand That set a new moon on the hill for me, And hung the night with stars — With white festoons of stars — Looped from the corners of the world.