I Was Eighteen

I was eighteen
Courage of thirty
With a heart, I believed ,
Was enough rough and tough.
Yet when they came
To measure my height and fairness
And, oh, the curvature of my breasts.
I trembled, as never before
My courage was just a firefly.

I was eighteen
Too young to hide fear
But there was always a way out
I clung to a shy face.

I was eighteen
Courage of thirty
Yet when he dared to question me,
Sipping the hot tea I served,
On my name and age
My tongue went dry
Sticking to the palate
My questions got glued there.

I was eighteen
Too old for mathematics
But there was always a reason
And I calculated the gold,
Estates and wades of notes.

I was eighteen
Courage of thirty
Yet on a fine morning
I stretched my neck
To a thread of gold, I think
I shrank to fifteen, ten or five
My courage was just a firefly.