The Old Man's Comforts
And How He Gained Them
   by Robert Southey*

"You are old, father William," the young man cried,
    "The few locks which are left you are grey;
    You are hale, father William, a hearty old man;
    Now tell me the reason, I pray."

    "In the days of my youth," father William replied,
    "I remember'd that youth would fly fast,
    And abus'd not my health and my vigour at first,
    That I never might need them at last."

    "You are old, father William," the young man cried,
    "And pleasures with youth pass away.
    And yet you lament not the days that are gone;
    Now tell me the reason, I pray."

    "In the days of my youth," father William replied,
    "I rememberd that youth could not last;
    I thought of the future, whatever I did,
    That I never might grieve for the past."

    "You are old, father William," the young man cried,
    "And life must be hast'ning away;
    You are cheerful and love to converse upon death;
    Now tell me the reason, I pray."

    "I am cheerful, young man," father William replied,
    "Let the cause thy attention engage;
    In the days of my youth I remember'd my God!
    And He hath not forgotten my age."

*Who also wrote "Goldilocks and the Three Bears"