المرء مثل هلال عند رؤيته

يبدو ضئيلا نراه ثم يتسق

A man is like the crescent when first seen,

He seems so thin we think he will not last,

حتى إذا ما تمّ أعقبه

مرّ الجديدين نقصا ثم يمّحق

But when he is fully formed end to end,

Succeeded by new moons, he starts to wane fast.