"My face looks like a wedding-cake left out in the rain"

This quote by W. H. Auden is a metaphor for the effects of aging and the death of time. It recommends that the speaker's face has been weathered and used by the years, and is no longer as vibrant and vibrant as it once was. The image of a wedding cake excluded in the rain is a vibrant one, and suggests that the speaker's face has been exposed to the elements and has actually been changed by them. The metaphor also implies that the speaker's charm has been diminished, and that the ravages of time have taken their toll. The quote is a poignant pointer of the inevitability of aging and the passing of time, and functions as a suggestion to appreciate the charm of youth while it lasts.