A Sheaf Gleaned in French Fields/Gather the Rosebuds while Ye May (Anonymous)
GATHER THE ROSEBUDS WHILE YE MAY.
ANONYMOUS.
Said the mother Good-Weather,
To her girls as she parted,
Now be happy together
As ye dance merry-hearted;
Know, sweet flowers of delight,
Born in spring, like the rose,
In summer fade quite,
And in winter it snows.
At fifteen is the chance
For such as would dance.
At twenty I thought
Love was most charming,
But in his net caught,
My case was alarming.
A tyrant is Love,
And he holds us while dying,
As the hawk holds the dove,
'Tis all sighing and crying.
At fifteen is the chance
For such as would dance.
Amusement and Laughter
Reigned at my marriage,
But I learned soon after
My bliss to disparage.
With a husband oft grumbling,
And imps howling free,
'Twas bewildering and humbling,
Could the dance then suit me?
At fifteen is the chance
For such as would dance.
Time made me, alas!
An old grandmother,
Things once at that pass
All pleasure's a bother.
One coughs often in talking,
One reclines in a chair,
One trembles in walking,
One's partner is Care.
At fifteen is the chance
For such as would dance.