Classic Poem

You think that I'm a happy man
With Novius so near me,
And when I lift my finger can
Get him at once to cheer me.
The truth is he's as far away
As is my other friend
Who rules Syene's land to-day
Where Nile's blue waters end.
I never meet him at a meal,
Nor find his door ajar,
There's not a soul in Rome, I feel,
So near and yet so far.
Well, either I or he must move
Away from here, that's plain.
When we're not neighbours, it may prove
That we shall meet again.