To Lucasta, Going to the Wars
I
Tell me not, sweet, I am unkind,
That from the nunnery
Of thy chaste breast and quiet mind
To war and arms I fly.
II
True: a new Mistress now I chase,
The first foe in the field;
And with a stronger faith embrace
A sword, a horse, a shield.
III
Yet this inconstancy is such,
As you too shall adore;
I could not love thee, dear, so much,
Loved I not Honour more.
---
Richard Lovelace (1618-1657)
from Lucasta, 1649
[Poem is in the public domain worldwide]
Richard Lovelace biography
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