Bag of Tools - R. L. Sharpe (by Maggie Smith)

Isn't it strange

That princes and kings,

And clowns that caper

In sawdust rings,

And common people

Like you and me

Are builders for eternity?

Each is given a bag of tools,

A shapeless mass,

A book of rules;

And each must make,

Ere life is flown,

A stumbling-block

Or a stepping-stone.