Sonnet XVI

And yet, because thou overcomest so,

Because thou art more noble and like a king,

Thou canst prevail against my fears and fling

Thy purple round me, till my heart shall grow

Too close against thine heart, henceforth to know

How it shook when alone. Why, conquering

May prove as lordly and complete a thing

In lifting upward as in crushing low:

And, as a soldier struck down by a sword

May cry, "My strife ends here," and sink to earth

Even so, Beloved, I at last record,

Here ends my doubt! If thou invite me forth,

I rise above abasement at the word.

Make thy love larger to enlarge my worth.