At Twenty-One

At Twenty-One
James Dinsmore

What is such a serious face
Doing on one so young?
Why do the eyes look calloused,
At only twenty-one?

Eyes that have learned to protect the mind,
By looking through the schemes of man;
In big cities and busy streets,
Not sensing what the scenes demand.

Oh, but of course the boy breaks through
To impress upon himself and friends;
That life is for folly and great adventure,
Though he must work to reach these ends.

Working with hands that liked to play,
He finds himself a struggling man;
To earn a niche, a life and dream,
That requires all the strength at hand.

Yet is was a youthful sprint,
That sent this boy down such trails;
To confront a larger world
Where awesome discipline prevails.

So the serious face is much a mask,
He’s still a boy at heart;
In a complicated and growing game,
A young man has found his part.


The glory of young men is their strength: and the beauty of old men is their grey head. Proverbs 20:29