TO A LADY ASKING HIM HOW LONG HE WOULD LOVER HER
It is not, Celia, in our power
To say how long our love will last;
It may be we within this hour
May lose those joys we now do taste:
The Blessed, that immortal be,
From change in love are only free.
Then since we mortal lovers are,
Ask not how long our love will last;
But while it does, let us take care
Each minute be with pleasure passed:
Were it not madness to deny
To live because we’re sure to die?
George Etherege, 1635-1691
Laura Freeman, author 