The Poet's Hair
Today, as I spied in a mirror, I saw
(This is the order of things which is useless to deny)
Accusing sad grey hair,
4 The cause of man's anguish, it arrives furtively.
To my blond hair (mine is the cause of wrath to vex me
When I remember my youth)
Has come the new and different colour of grey sprigs,
8 And my wrath is due to its colour.
The taunt which causes anguish awoke in me memories
As I spied into the faultless glass;
The white hair today feels extreme
12 Longing for its previous shining colour.
My copious hair used to have the colour of gold,
It was the object of maidens' long gaze;
Today, the main colour being greyness,
16 A languishing possession is all that it has.
A possession [i.e. of hair] without greyness is the bloom of
one's looks,
Very quickly does it wither,
- The order of man's nature is to become grey -
20 A great head of well groomed blond hair.
You were a yellow veil like the colour of gold,
Desirable hair, a wonderful sight;
Today my brave but broken heart crushes me completely
24 Because you are so grey and ugly!