Time & Brevity
How euery thing must haue a tyme
From Poetical Works, ed. Dyce (1843)
Ye may here now, in this ryme,
How euery thing must haue a tyme.
Tyme is a thing that no man may resyst;
Tyme is trancytory and irreuocable;
Who sayeth the contrary, tyme passeth as hym lyst;
Tyme must be taken in season couenable;
Take tyme when tyme is, for tyme is ay mutable;
All thynge hath tyme, who can for it prouyde;
Byde for tyme who wyll, for tyme wyll no man byde.
Tyme to be sad, and tyme to play and sporte;
Tyme to take rest by way of recreacion;
Tyme to study, and tyme to use comfort;
Tyme of pleasure, and tyme of consolation:
Thus tyme hath his tyme of diuers maner facion:
Tyme for to eate and drynke for thy repast;
Tyme to be lyberall, and tyme to make no wast;
Tyme to trauell, and tyme for to rest;
Tyme for to speake, and tyme to holde thy pease;
Tyme would be vsed when tyme is best;
Tyme to begyn, and tyme for to cease;
And when tyme is, [to] put thyselfe in prease,
And when tyme is, to holde thyselfe abacke;
For tyme well spent can neuer haue lacke.
The rotys take theyr sap in tyme of vere;
In tyme of somer flowres fresh and grene;
In tyme of haruest men their corne shere;
In tyme of wynter the north wynde waxeth kene,
So bytterly bytynge the flowres be not sene;
The kalendis of Janus, with his frostes hore,
That tyme is when people must lyue vpon the store.
Cite this poem
MLA
Skelton, John. “How euery thing must haue a tyme.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/skelton/20/.
Chicago
Skelton, John. “How euery thing must haue a tyme.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/skelton/20/.
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