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EPIGRAM: 47 by MARCUS VALERIUS MARTIALIS

First Line: THESE ARE THINGS THAT BEING POSSEST
Last Line: AND NEITHER FEAR NOR WISH TO DIE.

THESE are things that being possest
Will make a life that's truly blest.
Estate bequeath'd, not got with toil;
A good hot fire, a grateful soil;
No strife, warm clothes, a quiet soul;
A strength entire, a body whole;
Prudent simplicity, equal friends;
A diet that no art commends;
A night not drunk, and yet secure;
A bed not sad, yet chaste and pure;
Long sleeps to make the nights but short,
A will to be but what thou art;
Nought rather choose; contented lie,
And neither fear nor wish to die.



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