Melancholetta

When I Was One-and-Twenty

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

- A. E. Housman

I read this poem when I was 14 something in an Issac Asimov's book called Ghosts and Monsters.The stories in the book have a very subtle horror in them unlike most other creepy books and it was my favourite read those days.

posted by N @ 10:36 PM