Song: To Celia / Ben Jonson

Song: To Celia

Drink to me only with thine eyes,
        And I will pledge with mine;
Or leave a kiss but in the cup,
        And I’ll not look for wine.
The thirst that from the soul doth rise
        Doth ask a drink divine;
But might I of Jove’s nectar sup,
        I would not change for thine.

I sent thee late a rosy wreath,
        Not so much honouring thee
As giving it a hope, that there
        It could not wither'd be.
But thou thereon didst only breathe,
        And sent’st it back to me;
Since when it grows, and smells, I swear,
        Not of itself, but thee.

~~
Ben Jonson (1572-1637)
from The Forest, 1616

[Poem is in the public domain worldwide]

Ben Jonson biography

"Song: To Celia" read by Bruce Wall. Courtesy Poetry Refit.