Infancy! a blushing spring,
Violet-strewn and blossoming,
April’s sunshine, April’s rain,
April ne’er to come again.
Boyhood! sun-kiss’d summer hours,
Fragrant with a thousand flowers,
Smiling ’neath a tearless sky,
Chasing life’s bright butterfly.
Manhood! in autumnal suit,
Rich in russet golden fruit,
God-stamped, noble, tender, true,
Harvest of preceding two.
Age! a silvery winter scene,
Blessing joy-dreams that have been.
White with hoarfrost, angel-given,
Last and nearest step to heaven!