Life Investment
Cast your bread upon the water,
You find after many days;
Sending a son or daughter,
They will find it that it stays.
Give a portion to seven,
You know not what disaster;
As the wrath comes from Heaven,
For you ignored the Master.
If the clouds are full of rain,
They empty upon the earth;
Does a tree feel any pain,
When the seed is giving birth.
Observing wind will not sow,
Looking at clouds will not reap;
But the farmer will just know,
During harvest will not sleep.
You know not of your spirit,
Comes to the bones in the womb;
You know not to inherit,
God saving you from the tomb.
In the morning sow your seed,
At night withhold not your hand;
You do not know what you need,
Confused about where you stand.
Truly the light remains sweet,
Being pleasant for the eyes;
Causing warmth under your feet,
Reflecting to make you wise.
If you live for many years,
Remember days of darkness;
All of the toils and snares,
Vanity of the starkness.
O young man, in your youth,
In those days let your heart cheer;
But do not become uncouth,
And have your heart walk in fear.
Remove sorrow from your heart,
From your body remove pain;
The dawn of life a new start,
Letting vanity not gain.
Copyright ©2022 Richard Newton Sherrer
About this poem
Cast Your Bread upon the Waters Ecclesiastes 11
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Written on June 25, 2022
Submitted by richards.77936 on June 24, 2022
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:23 min read
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Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABAB CACA DEDE XFXF GHGH IJIJ KLKL XXXX MNMN ODOD A |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,232 |
Words | 279 |
Stanzas | 11 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 1 |
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"Life Investment" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/130600/life-investment>.
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