The Devonshire Manuscript/I abide and abide and better abide

f. [81v]

1    I abide and abide and better {t'} abide 2    {u'} {p3} and after the olde prouerbe the happie daye 3    and ever my ladye to me dothe saye 4    let me alone and I will pro {p3} uyde 5    I abide and abide and tarrye the tyde 6    and with {w+t+} abiding spede well ye maye 7    thus do I abide I wott allwaye 8    nother obtayning nor yet denied 9    Aye me this long abidyng 10    semithe to me as who sayethe 11    a prolonging of a dieng dethe 12    or a refusing of a de r yrid thing 13    moche ware it bettre for to be playne 14    then to saye abide and yet shall not obtayne /

fs

Commentary
Attributed to Sir Thomas Wyatt, this poem was entered by H8. The speaker finds himself in a prolonged state of “dieng dethe” because the lady neither grants love, nor refuses him.