Chaucer and Spring Fever

"O blisful light, of which the bemes clere
Adorneth al the thridde heven faire!
O sonnes lief, O Joves doughter deere,
Plesance of love, O goodly debonaire,
In gentil hertes ay redy to repaire!
O veray cause of heele and of gladnesse,
Iheryed be thy myght and thi goodnesse!

In hevene and helle, in erthe and salte see
Is felt thi myght, if that I wel descerne;
As man, bird, best, fissh, herbe, and grene tree
Thee fele in tymes with vapour eterne.
God loveth, and to love wol nought werne;
And in this world no lyves creature
Withouten love is worth, or may endure..."

"Ye holden regne and hous in unitee..." (The sense is that Venus, goddess of Love, holds all the world together in unity.)

-From Geoffrey Chaucer's Troilus & Criseyde, Book 3, lines 1-14 and line 29.

Middle English is still not my specialty, but every now and then, I thought I would share some of the book learnin' that I experience while I'm here in the big city. I assumed it would be appropriate for this time of year. Chaucer seemed to enjoy using Spring as his backdrop for most of his courtly love tales, so why not?