chillyWhen I was one-and-twenty
A Shropshire Lad, no. 13
WHEN I was one-and-twenty
I heard a wise man say,
'Give crowns and pounds and guineas
But not your heart away;
Give pearls away and rubies
But keep your fancy free.'
But I was one-and-twenty,
No use to talk to me.
When I was one-and-twenty
I heard him say again,
'The heart out of the bosom
Was never given in vain;
'Tis paid with sighs a plenty
And sold for endless rue.'
And I am two-and-twenty,
And oh, 'tis true, 'tis true.
March 26 is a big day in the world of poetry; it's the birthday of both A. E. Houseman and Robert Frost, and the date on which Walt Whitman died. And speaking of Walt Whitman, let me just say: "Damn you, Walt Whitman! I! Hate! You! Walt! Freaking! Whitman! Leaves of Grass, my ass!"A. E. Housman (1859–1936)
