Doçura pródiga, por que gastas
Contigo mesma o legado de tua beleza?
A herança da natureza nada dá, porém cede,
E, sendo franca, empresta a quem for livre;
Depois, bela e tola, por que abusas
Da abundância que te é dada a ofertar?
Usurária sem proveito, por que usas
Um valor tão grande e, mesmo assim, não vives?
Lidando apenas contigo mesma,
Tu, a ti mesma, teu doce ser enganas;
Então, como, quando a natureza te chama para que vás,
Que espólios aceitáveis deixarás?
Tua beleza intocada contigo deve ser enterrada,
Pois, ao ser usada, tornar-te-á sua executada.
Unthrifty loveliness, why dost thou spend
Upon thyself thy beauty’s legacy?
Nature’s bequest gives nothing but doth lend,
And being frank she lends to those are free.
Then, beauteous niggard, why dost thou abuse
The bounteous largess given thee to give?
Profitless usurer, why dost thou use
So great a sum of sums, yet canst not live?
For having traffic with thyself alone,
Thou of thyself thy sweet self dost deceive.
Then how, when nature calls thee to be gone,
What acceptable audit canst thou leave?
Thy unused beauty must be tomb’d with thee,
Which, used, lives th’ executor to be.
Notes
Unthrifty (1): wasteful or unprofitable.
beauty’s legacy (2): the beauty passed down to you (that should extend to your children). Your beauty is but a loan from nature: you must not hoard it.
frank (4): generous.
free (4): liberal/generous.
niggard (5): miser.
usurer (7): moneylender.
traffic with thyself alone (9): A moneylender would not turn a profit if he lent only to himself.
th’ executor to be (14): the child he would bear.