HELLO, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray, An' it beats ole Ned to see the way 'At the crow's feet 's a-getherin' aroun' yore eyes; Tho' it ought n't to cause me no su'prise, Fur there's many a sun 'at you 've seen rise An' many a one you 've seen go down Sence yore step was light an' yore hair was brown, An' storms an' snows have had their way -- Hello, ole man, you 're a-gittin' gray. Hello, ole man, you 're a-gittin' gray, An' the youthful pranks 'at you used to play Are dreams of a far past long ago That lie in a heart where the fires burn low -- That has lost the flame though it kept the glow, An' spite of drivin' snow an' storm, Beats bravely on forever warm. December holds the place of May -- Hello, ole man, you 're a-gittin' gray. Hello, ole man, you 're a-gittin' gray -- Who cares what the carpin' youngsters say? For, after all, when the tale is told, Love proves if a man is young or old! Old age can't make the heart grow cold When it does the will of an honest mind; When it beats with love fur all mankind; Then the night but leads to a fairer day -- Hello, ole man, you 're a-gittin' gray! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...NEED OF LOVING by STRICKLAND GILLILAN A CHRISTMAS CAROL by JOSIAH GILBERT HOLLAND DEATH OF THE DAY by WALTER SAVAGE LANDOR COLUMBUS by CINCINNATUS HEINE MILLER A SATIRICAL ELEGY ON THE DEATH OF A LATE FAMOUS GENERAL by JONATHAN SWIFT WINTER SLEEP by EDITH MATILDA THOMAS TO A FOIL'D EUROPEAN REVOLUTIONAIRE by WALT WHITMAN AMY WENTWORTH; FOR WILLIAM BRADFORD by JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER CLIO, NINE ECLOGUES IN HONOUR OF NINE VIRTUES: TO THE READER by WILLIAM BASSE |