Living
Pastime with good company
From Early English Lyrics, ed. Chambers & Sidgwick (1907)
Pastime with good company
I love and shall, until I die.
Grudge who lust, but none deny.
So God be pleased, thus live will I.
For my pastance,
Hunt, sing and dance,
My heart is set.
All goodly sport
For my comfort
Who shall me let?
Youth must have some dalliance,
Of good or ill some pastance.
Company me thinks the best,
All thoughts and fancies to digest;
For idleness
Is chief mistress
Of vices all.
Then who can say
But mirth and play
Is best of all?
Company with honesty
Is virtue, vices to flee;
Company is good and ill,
But every man has his freewill.
The best ensue,
The worst eschew!
My mind shall be,
Virtue to use,
Vice to refuse;
Thus shall I use me.
Cite this poem
MLA
VIII, Henry. “Pastime with good company.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/henry-viii/2/.
Chicago
VIII, Henry. “Pastime with good company.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/henry-viii/2/.
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