XX
Reading edition
HAVE I not loved thee truthfully enough, Sweetheart? How canst thou willingly deny That through love’s intercourse I did comply With every whim of thine? Couldst thou rebuff The tenderness of love with paltry stuff That men do flatter with, and thus defy Far holier elements of life? Ah, why Dost thou prefer a hand still stained and rough? Is it not that, surrounding thee, are many Who think less deeply than my heart would go, To find a kindred being in the air Of sacred treasures, that but few, if any, Seek in this life (and thus their folly show), While we might still love’s habitation share?