How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #4
We live in time so little time
And we learn all so painfully,
That we may spare this hour's term
To practice for eternity. (37-40)
By now, the speaker sounds resigned to his mortality, able to apply a balanced poetic logic in defense of his inactivity. You can cheat death's finality by finding moments, like this one, which has its own connection to eternity.