I am a parcel of vain strivings tied br By a chance bond together, br Dangling this way and that, their links br Were made so loose and wide, br Methinks, br For milder weather. br br A bunch of violets without their roots, br And sorrel intermixed, br Encircled by a wisp of straw br Once coiled about their shoots, br The law br By which I'm fixed. br br A nosegay which Time clutched from out br Those fair Elysian fields, br With weeds and broken stems, in haste, br Doth make the rabble rout br That waste br The day he yields. br br And here I bloom for a short hour unseen, br Drinking my juices up, br With no root in the land br To keep my branches green, br But stand br In a bare cup. br br Some tender buds were left upon my stem br In mimicry of life, br But ah! the children will not know, br Till time has withered them, br The woe br With which they're rife. br br But now I see I was not plucked for naught, br And after in life's vase br Of glass set while I might survive, br But by a kind hand brought br Alive br To a strange place. br br That stock thus thinned will soon redeem its hours, br And by another year, br Such as God knows, with freer air, br More fruits and fairer flowers br Will bear, br While I droop here.