In this poem, Hopkins contrasts the changeable beauty of life on earth with God's unchanging beauty. The first stanza begins by describing parts of nature that are always varying: skies that show different colors ("couple-colour"), light that flickers and reflects on the trout as they swim and leap through the water, the way a bird's wings flutter, and even what humankind produces: landscapes partially plowed for crops and partially lying fallow or unused. He also notices the "trades" or manufacturing projects that add variety to the landscape.
The second and last stanza of this short poem praises God, who can never change and who is whole and unified, for creating what is "original ... strange ... freckled." What the poet sees all around him, every fleeting moment of beauty, causes him to appreciate the mystery and goodness of God. The poet doesn't try to understand why God delights in bestowing such variety on humans. Instead, Hopkins notices and celebrates all these things.
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