Classic Poem

In youth's first flush when hearts are light
And hopes are high, and spirits gay,
When all the Earth around seems bright
And life one joyous holiday.

It is not then, when hall or bower
With careless festive steps we tread,
Affection's deepest, purest power,
Upon unsuffering souls is shed.

'Tis when unuttered miseries melt
When our long cherished hopes decay —
When bitter disappointment's felt —
And some desert — and some betray —

O! it is then, one fond true heart
Is tried and proved, and loved and prized,
Like sibyl's leaves the wasted part
But makes the rest more idolized!