XL

'I know what was, I feel full well what is,

      And I should rage, if spirits could go mad;

Though I forget the taste of earthly bliss,

      That paleness warms my grave, as though I had

A Seraph chosen from the bright abyss

      To be my spouse: thy paleness makes me glad;

Thy beauty grows upon me, and I feel

A greater love through all my essence steal.'