“A Dirge”<\/p>\n
“When chill November’s surly blast<\/p>\n
Made fields and forests bare,<\/p>\n
One ev’ning, as I wander’d forth<\/p>\n
Along the banks of Ayr,<\/p>\n
I spied a man, whose aged step<\/p>\n
Seem’d weary, worn with care,<\/p>\n
His face was furrow’d o’er with years,<\/p>\n
And hoary was his hair.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘Young stranger, wither wand’rest thou?’<\/p>\n
Began the rev’rend\u00a0\u00a0Sage;<\/p>\n
‘Does thirst of wealth thy step constrain,<\/p>\n
Or youthful pleasures rage?<\/p>\n
Or haply, pressed with cares and woes,<\/p>\n
Too soon thou hast began<\/p>\n
To wander forth, with me, to mourn<\/p>\n
The miseries of man.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘The sun that overhangs the moors,<\/p>\n
Out spreading far and wide,<\/p>\n
Where hundreds labor to support<\/p>\n
A haughty lordling’s pride:<\/p>\n
I’ve seen you weary winter-sun<\/p>\n
Twice forty times return;<\/p>\n
And ev’ry time has added proofs<\/p>\n
That man was made to mourn.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘O man! while in thy early years,<\/p>\n
How prodigal of time!<\/p>\n
Mis-spending all thy precious hours,<\/p>\n
Thy glorious, youthful prime!<\/p>\n
Alternate follies take the sway,<\/p>\n
Licentious passions burn:<\/p>\n
Which tenfold forces gives Nature’s law,<\/p>\n
That man was made to mourn.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘Look not alone on youthful prime,<\/p>\n
Or manhood’s active might;<\/p>\n
Man then is useful to his kind,<\/p>\n
Supported is his right:<\/p>\n
But see him on the edge of life,<\/p>\n
With cares and sorrows worn;<\/p>\n
Then Age and Want–O ill-match’d pair!–<\/p>\n
Show man was made to mourn.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘A few seem favorites of Fate,<\/p>\n
In Pleasures lap carest,<\/p>\n
Yet think not all the rich and great<\/p>\n
Are likewise truly blest:<\/p>\n
But, oh! what crowds in ev’ry land,<\/p>\n
All wretched and forlorn,<\/p>\n
Though weary life this lesson learn,<\/p>\n
That man was made to mourn.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘Many and sharp the num’rous ills<\/p>\n
Inwoven with our frame!<\/p>\n
More pointed still we make ourselves<\/p>\n
Regret, remorse, and shame!<\/p>\n
And man, whose heav’n- erected face<\/p>\n
The smiles of love adorn,–<\/p>\n
Man’s inhumanity to man<\/p>\n
Makes countless thousands mourn!<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘See yonder poor, o’erlabour’d\u00a0 wight,<\/p>\n
So abject, mean, and vile,<\/p>\n
Who begs a brother of the earth<\/p>\n
To give him leave to toil;<\/p>\n
And see his lordly fellow-worm<\/p>\n
The poor petition spurn,<\/p>\n
Unmindful,\u00a0though a weeping wife<\/p>\n
And helpless offspring mourn.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘If I’m design’d yon lordling’s slave–<\/p>\n
By Nature’s law design’d–<\/p>\n
Why was an independent wish<\/p>\n
E’er planted in my mind?<\/p>\n
If not, why am I subject to<\/p>\n
His cruelty, or scorn?<\/p>\n
Or why has man the will and pow’r<\/p>\n
To make his fellow mourn?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘Yet let this not too much, my son,<\/p>\n
Disturb thy youthful breast:<\/p>\n
This partial view of human-kind<\/p>\n
Is surely not the last!<\/p>\n
The poor oppressed, honest man<\/p>\n
Had never, sure, been born,<\/p>\n
Had there not been some recompense<\/p>\n
To comfort those that mourn!<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
‘O Death! the poor man’s dearest friend,<\/p>\n
The kindest and the best!<\/p>\n
Welcome the hour my aged limbs<\/p>\n
Are laid with thee at rest!<\/p>\n
The great, the wealthy fear thy blow,<\/p>\n
From pomp and pleasure torn,<\/p>\n
But, oh! a blest relief to those<\/p>\n
That weary laden mourn!'”<\/p>\n
Robert Burns.<\/p>\n
Feel the Burns, Islander.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
“A Dirge” “When chill November’s surly blast Made fields and forests bare, One ev’ning, as I wander’d forth Along the banks of Ayr, I spied a man, whose aged step Seem’d weary, worn with care, His face was furrow’d o’er with years, And hoary was his hair. ‘Young stranger, wither wand’rest thou?’ Began the … Continue reading ““Man was Made to Mourn””<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1117","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewalrussaid.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewalrussaid.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewalrussaid.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewalrussaid.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewalrussaid.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1117"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thewalrussaid.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1117\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1118,"href":"https:\/\/thewalrussaid.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1117\/revisions\/1118"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewalrussaid.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}