Squire's lullaby is a series of reassurances from a parent to a daughter. Each stanza names something a child might fear, then calms it: an old cat, powerful men, the night sky, and finally the world itself. The refrain "you are safe with me" closes every stanza, and its steady repetition works like the rocking rhythm of a real lullaby.
The speaker's tenderness is clear in the pet names, "sparrow," "rose," "light," before the final, plain "daughter." But the comfort isn't naive. The speaker admits that men can be strong and that the mother storms and rages, yet insists on strength and care in answer. The threats grow larger with each stanza, from a small house cat to the whole world, and the promise grows with them. The mood is soft and protective, with a quiet determination underneath. The speaker seems to be soothing herself as much as the child.