Fathers and Sons

1

Young at his father’s fire
  He lords it and takes the best;
Old, at the fire of his son,
  He covers his knees with his breast.

2

Father and son take shares?
  The son the father devours!
All that is ours is theirs,
  Nothing of theirs is ours.


Source: O'Connor, Frank (tr); Kings, Lords, & Commons: An Anthology from the Irish; 1962; London; Macmillan & Co; p.81