From Menander

Fond youth! who dream'st that hoarded gold
Is needful not alone to pay
For all thy various items sold,
To serve the wants of every day;

Bread, vinegar, and oil, and meat,
For savory viands season'd high;
But somewhat more important yet--
I tell thee what it cannot buy.

No treasure hadst thou more amass'd
Than fame to Tantalus assign'd,
Would save thee from a tomb at last,
But thou must leave it all behind.

I give thee, therefore, counsel wise;
Confide not vainly in thy store,
However large -- much less despise
Others comparatively poor;

But in thy more exalted state
A just and equal temper show
That all who see thee rich and great,
May deem thee worthy to be so.

William Cowper The copyright of the poems published here are belong to their poets. Internetpoem.com is a non-profit poetry portal. All information in here has been published only for educational and informational purposes.