248. To the Virgins, to make much of Time

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying:
And this same flower that smiles today
To-morrow will be dying.

The glorious lamp of Heaven, the sun,
The higher he's a-getting,
The sooner will his race be run.
And nearer he's to setting.

That age is best which is the first,
When youth and blood are warmer;
But being spent, the worse, and worst
Times still succeed the former.

Then be not coy, but use your time,
And while ye may, go marry:
For having lost but once your prime,
You may for ever tarry.

When I first read this, as a seventeen year old girl, I clearly understood Harricks urging.
Ironically the older I get the more I embrace that urging because I find that I have more freedom and more confidence to do so.
To paraphrase: "Live your life, savor it, so that when you are old you can look back with joy and satisfaction upon it, until you are dead that is."

So every day, you will find me gathering my rosebuds.