Loveliest of trees, the cherry now

"Loveliest of trees, the cherry now" is a lyric poem by the English Latin scholar and poet A. E. Housman. Originally written in 1895, it was first published as the second poem in his collection A Shropshire Lad, where it appeared under the Roman numeral II, but without other title. It is usually referred to by its first line. Its theme, voiced by a young man contemplating cherry blossom, is the transitoriness of life and beauty, and the need to enjoy them while they last. It is probably Housman's best-known poem, and one of the most anthologized of English lyrics. Its opening line has become a part of the language, "inextricably lodged in the public mind and vocabulary". In a 1995 poll it was chosen as one of the British people's 100 favourite poems. It has been set to music over 60 times.

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