"Encouraging Learning" (Tang Dynasty) Yan Zhenqing
The lights are bright at the third watch and the chickens are at the fifth watch.
It is the time for men to study.
Black-haired people don’t know how to study diligently early,
White-haired people regret studying late.
Notes: The rooster crows at dawn. Black hair: youth, refers to a teenager. Baishou: When a person is old, it refers to an old person. Translation: It refers to hard-working people and diligent students who are still working and studying in the middle of the night. The lights are still on at the third watch. Soon after they turn off the lights and lie down for a short rest, the rooster crows at the fifth watch. These hard-working people I have to get up and get busy again. This poem warns us: If you don’t know how to study diligently when you are young, it will be too late to study when you are old. Explanation: The best time for boys to study is between midnight and the time when the rooster crows. When I was young, I only knew how to play and didn't know how to study hard. When I get older, I regret why I didn't know how to study hard when I was young.