أَقعَدَتنا زَمانَةٌ وَزَمانٌ

جائِرٌ عَن قَضاءِ حَقِّ الشَريفِ

A time and an unjust time seated us,

Deviating from fulfilling the right of the noble one.

وَلَئِن ثَقَّلا عَنِ الخِدمَةِ الخَط

وَلَعَن خاطِرٍ إِلَيها خَفيفِ

And if they became too heavy for serving the line,

And the idea of going to it lightly was cursed.

فَاِقتَصَرنا فيما نُؤَدّي مِنَ العَر

ضِ عَلى الكُتبِ وَالرَسولِ الحَصيفِ

So we sufficed, in what we perform of poetry,

With books and the wise messenger.

وَالفَتى ذو الشَبابِ يَبسُطُ في التَق

صيرِ عُذرَ الشَيخِ العَليلِ الضَعيفِ

And the young man with youth extends in being short,

The excuse of the sick old frail one.