[Study of Holbein's] (Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey no date)
(My) '...achievement small
In scale and flawed...' I'm
'...merely a
Man who served,'
-I contrived to show
-Court bard broadside, through
-Pains, travails,
-Attaining;
A 'literary
Personality'
Whose pen's work
Was 'distinct,'
-Is still in print, as
-Mercenary ken
-Moves pieces
-By default;
Faint praise when charged as
Borrower of text
In Latin
Translation,
-'Neither borrower
-Nor lender be,' traced
-Lines patterned
-Depiction;
'Many things tasting
Of a noble mind,'
Sir P. S.
Tongued the block,
-Too 'tender aged,' lodged
-Predilection when
-Ranked, Chaucer,
-Spenser, you;
Insurrectionist's
Vocabulary,
'Words, words, words,'
Formation,
-Illustrator's stirred
-Incubus foments
-Primary
-Canvasses;
'Victorious his
Lance, matchless his pen,'
Geraldine
Bird laments,
-'Perchance to dream' that
-Prick-tease heralded
-Scholarly
-Renewal;
'Windsor, wherein seems
Lust and joy did tread,
Pleasant dreams,
Quiet bed,'
-Tendrils extracted
-Of boy's foolery,
-Bachelor's
-Bowery;
'We have fought and chased
In active games, rein
Nimble braced,
We did strain,'
-I have lain, encased
-In cornstalks, food brought,
-Left in peace
-My gamble;
'No secrets forborn,
Or promise unkept,
Friendship sworn
Where trust leapt,'
-Lawrence's pencil,
-Adept in kinship's
-Fist, garnered
-Likenesses;
'Blood forsakes my guise,
Where is my fere, whom
Woes freed, lies,
Plaints entomb,'
-Boxer's torso, knee,
-Pubic plaits festooned
-Conformist
-Forbearance;
'I see that things pitched
Not as outward poke,
Wrapped in stitched,
Crafty cloak,'
-Courtier Lawrence
-Engaged attentions
-To flesh out
-Dramatic;
'Garments to clothe your
Naked man suffice
To lecture
Clad in vice,'
-Moth furred armature
-Swept from sedulous
-Heads fixed by
-Taskmaster;
'By princely acts I
Strove to make endure,
Houses high
Set my cure,'
-Royalty's mister
-Courted credentials
-To stave off
-Creditors;
'An heir unaligned
Shall reap fruits I sow,
Goods resigned,
Title crow,'
-Each peer survived suits
-Lifetime succession,
-Lucrative
-Patronage;
'My soul offended
With griefs of follies,
Bells mended,
Scourged mollies,'
-Myself confounded
-By correspondence,
-Lads spread out
-Spelling paint;
'Burdened dissolute
At the Lord's behest,
'Til refute
Viper's nest,'
-Chastened, compulsive
-Paper procurer,
-Cotton limned
-Where flesh foiled;
'When sudden storms heave
Falsehoods to assail,
Crosswinds reave,
Safe ports fail,'
-Where leaden forearms
-Paused, bettors wagered
-Appointments
-Steep decline;
'These newly risen
Men would by their will
Unchristen
Chosen krill,'
-European tour
-Unfastened vaults of
-Luminous
-Collections;
'Scarce hath seed formed man
When death leads to earth,
Branch's span
Lopped from birth,'
-Five decades ceded
-Level planche to prop
-An easel,
-Fresh soled shoes;
'My glass presents me
A determined breast,
Thrawldom free
Planted rest,'
-My craft predestined
-A life's dependence
-Composing
-Eminence.
23 July 2020
