قَصَدتُ بِمَدحي جاهِداً نَحوَ خالِدٍ

أُؤَمَّلُ مِن جَدواهُ فوقَ مُنائي

I aimed my praise at Khalid, striving towards him,

Hoping for generosity from his open hand.

فَلَم يُعطِني مِن مالِهِ غَيرَ دِرهَمٍ

تَكَلَّفَهُ بَعدَ اِنقِطاعِ رَجائي

But he gave me nothing of his wealth except one coin -

A pittance, after my hopes in him had been cut off.

كَما اِقتَلَعَ الحَجّامُ ضِرساً صَحيحَةً

إِذا اِستُخرِجَت مِن شِدَّةٍ بِبُكاءِ

It was like a barber extracting a healthy tooth

By force, amidst loud wailing and crying.