William Shakespeare
1564-1616
Sonnet XLII
That thou
hast her it is not all my grief,
And yet it may be
said I loved her dearly;
That she hath thee
is of my wailing chief,
A loss in love that
touches me more nearly.
Loving offenders thus
I will excuse ye:
Thou dost love her,
because thou know'st I love her;
And for my sake even
so doth she abuse me,
Suffering my friend
for my sake to approve her.
If I lose thee, my
loss is my love's gain,
And losing her, my
friend hath found that loss;
Both find each other,
and I lose both twain,
And both for my sake
lay on me this cross:
But here's the joy; my friend and I are one;
Sweet flattery! then she loves but me alone.
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