The poem is as follows:
> Nature's first green is gold,
> Her hardest hue to hold.
> Her early leaf's a flower;
> But only so an hour.
> Then leaf subsides to leaf.
> So Eden sank to grief,
> So dawn goes down to day.
> Nothing gold can stay.
This poem resonates with Ponyboy because it captures the fleeting nature of beauty and innocence, which he associates with his childhood and the time he spent with his brother, Johnny.