Writing Journal

Amélie and I decided to write about a very captivating poem from A.E. Housman (1859-1936) named When I was one-and-twenty. It’s the story of a young man who talks about the meeting he once had with a very wise man. He tells the advices that the man has given him when he was a year younger. The wise man told him that material things can be given away; that his possessions are not necessarily what lead to happiness, but the most important thing in life is freedom. The young man did not pay any attention to the wise man but, at the end of the poem, confesses how much true and meaningful were these advices.

We do agree with the wise man’s mentality. Material possession is after all just stuff. It does not make you happy and neither does it defines who you really are as a human being. Happiness is what you feel deep inside you, your emotions, and your perception of things around you. To quote Brad Pitt in a famous movie - Fight Club - (great blockbuster by the way!): ‘‘The things you own end up owning you.’’ This quote is very significant because it brilliantly explains how the materialistic mind will only make you confined to live in an inexistent world, where stuff is more important than sensitivity. Don’t fall into a sinister world, completely lost in oblivion. Keep on sight your values, your ideals and above all, your freedom.

Our favourite part of the poem is: ‘‘But I was one-and-twenty, no use to talk to me.’’ Why? (We know you you’d ask us that question!) Well, nowadays, young people always trend to ignore some clever words from the oldest because they do not think it applies to their reality; they are young and the only good advices in life is what they will experience themselves later on. We are so unkind!

When the poem was written, this issue about generation conflict was already of actuality. It hasn’t changed much since these years. It makes us realize that respect is a virtue that is losing more and more of its significance.

In conclusion, life is a constant learning progress and we should, whatever our age, listen to the counsels people give to us. It is our responsibility to choose the advices that will guide us through life. The moral of this poem is to listen to what others have to say to you, especially older people. They have more life experience and can only make you learn from their previous mistakes. We must never forget that they once were, themselves, one-and-twenty.