Maggie's Farm

"Gather ye rosebuds while ye may"

--not the similar themed 17th century poem, but the Pre-Raphaelite painting by Waterhouse that was named after a line in the poem, come strongly to mind reading the post. Last stanza is a beaut --could stand alone.

The poem, by Robert Herrick, is named To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time and begins:

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles today,
Tomorrow will be dying.

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Then along comes Waterhouse, contemporary of Tagore (BTW born the year the Civil War began, died the year WWII for us began), who makes a painting (in 1908) titled after the first line in Herrick. Then, speculating here, he realized the girl was serving somebody, that the spirit of the 'rosebuds' line is better served another way, so in 1909 he made another, and used the title all over again. See both here:

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=gather+ye+rosebuds+while+ye+may&FORM=BIFD#x0y733

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Anyhoohaw, when the Great War, the war to end all war was percolating in the blue Pre-Raphaelite sky, much of culture was 'about the children'. Then as now.