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Experiment 5

The Admonition

page 9

The Admonition

No, no, not on thy cheek
Shall Heaven's blush be found,
Fair though it be and sleek
As fruits in garden ground,
For that death' s worm shall wound.

Nor at thy lips shall I
Drink the desired bliss
For which my soul is dry.
Fond one, more gently kiss,
Man's love is all amiss.

The sovereign herb, all-heal,
Hermits and saints do find
By rocky paths, and kneel
To pluck its flower kind.
We are not of their mind.

We may but weep a while,
Thirst, hunger, dread the night,
Swear falsely, speak with guile -
Shall rotting wormwood fight
Against the heavens' light ?

Yet come, child, to my arms.
We age with every breath.
Wind, wind your silken charms
About the grinning Death
Before desire faileth.

End piece by Barbara Moffat and Ross O'Rourke