Birthday
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
(16th January 1949)
I thank whatever gods may be
For all the happiness that's mine;
That I am festive, fit and free
To savour women, wit and wine;
That I may game of golf enjoy,
And have a formidable drive:
In short, that I'm a gay old boy
Though I be
Seventy-and-five.
My daughter thinks. because I'm old
(I'm not a crock, when all is said),
I mustn't let my feet get cold,
And should wear woollen socks in bed;
A worsted night-cap too, forsooth!
To humour her I won't contrive:
A man is in his second youth
When he is
Seventy-and-five.
At four-score years old age begins,
And not till then, I warn my wife;
At eighty I'll recant my sins,
And live a staid and sober life.
But meantime let me whoop it up,
And tell the world that I'm alive:
Fill to the brim the bubbly cup -
Here's health to
Seventy-and-five!
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on May 04, 2023
- 49 sec read
- 114 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | a ababcdcaD efefgdgxD hihijdjxD |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 850 |
Words | 157 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 1, 9, 9, 9 |
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"Birthday" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 24 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/32020/birthday>.
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