Sonnet 14, If Thou Must Love Me by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
If thou must love me, let it be for nought Except for love�s sake only. Do not say, �I love her for her smile�her look�her way Of speaking gently,�for a trick of thought That falls in well with mine, and certes brought A sense of pleasant ease on such a day�� For these things in themselves, Belov�d, may Be changed, or change for thee�and love, so wrought, May be unwrought so. Neither love me for Thine own dear pity's wiping my cheeks dry: A creature might forget to weep, who bore Thy comfort long, and lose thy love thereby! But love me for love's sake, that evermore Thou mayst love on, through love's eternity.
