Ah, wherefore onward, you hurrying wave,
  Do you lead the longing man through life?
  Never lingering at a flowery spot,
  He can never give himself up to joy!
 
   Already far behind his footsteps
      Lies the beautiful, golden time!
      His bliss is far away!
      Committed to the world and its pleasures,
      He has suffered deep sorrow.
 
   And vanished to his gaze
      Is the golden radiance of the future.
      Only memory alone
      May still twine flowers into a wreath for him
      In the hours of holy dedication.
 
Never flee then, you hurrying wave!
  No mortal is able to invoke you.
  But in the immortal shimmer of song
  You wander more gently, and you shine more purely.
 
   The storm wind roars with cold wings
      Over your dark course.
      See, you hurry along the desert!
      Far behind you are the sounds of festivity,
      There upon the hillside flowers wilt.
 
   But friendly figures
      Step out from the dark night.
      A wondrous shimmer, flooding forth
      From a higher power, laughs
      Where gentle angels preside.
 
You, upon the diminishing wave of life,
  Sing amiable songs to those who protect you,
  And in magical brightness there bloom for you
  Again the flowers of smiling childhood.