1
Have you seen the delightless abode,
Where Penury nurses Despair;
Where comfortless Life is a load,
Age wishes no longer to bear.
Ah! who, in this lazerhouse pent,
His lone wailings sends up to the skies?
‘Tis the Man whose young prime was mispent;
‘Tis he who so bitterly sighs.
2
His Youth, sunk in profligate waste,
Lest no Comforts Life’s evening to cheer;
He must only it’s bitterness taste,
No Friend, no kind relative near.
His Children by want forc’d to roam,
Are aliens wherever they are:
They have long left his desolate home;
Have left him alone to despair.
3
Have you seen the delectable place,
Where honor’d Age loves to abide;
Where Plenty, and Pleasure, and Peace,
With Virtue and Wisdom reside?
Autumn’s Fruits he has carefully stor’d;
His Herds willing tributes abound:
And the smiles of his plenteous board,
By his Children’s Children are crown’d.
4
And his is the Godlike delight,
The power to relieve the distress’d! …
Who can contemplate blessings so bright,
And not wish to be equally bless’d.
Then let not the means be forgot:
Remember, and mark this great truth;
‘Twas not Chance fix’d his prosp’rous Lot,
‘Twas the Virtues of provident Youth.
5
If such a bright prospect can charm,
If you feel emulation arise,
If your juvenile bosom is warm,
With the hope to be wealthy and wise;
O cherish the noble design,
The maxims of Prudence pursue,
Application and Industry join,
‘Tis the way fickle Fortune to woo.
6
Early cultivate Virtue’s rich seeds;
These will fruits in Life’s winter display:
Ne’er defer till to-morrow good deeds,
That as well might be finish’d to-day.
For Age and Experience can tell,
And you’ll find, when you grow an old man,
Though it’s never too late to do well,
You will wish you had sooner began.
(Nathaniel Bloomfield)
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Based on Topics: Man Poems, Life Poems, Sadness Poems, War & Peace Poems, Youth Poems, Sense & Perception Poems, Friendship Poems, Place Poems, Hope Poems, Home Poems, Smiling PoemsBased on Keywords: profligate, mispent, delightless