‘It was a lover and his lass’ from As You Like It
It was a lover and his lass
With a hey and a ho and a hey nonino,
That o’er the green cornfield did pass
In springtime, the only pretty ring-time,
When birds do sing, hey ding a ding, ding
Sweet lovers love the spring.
Between the acres of the rye,
With a hey and a ho and a hey nonino,
These pretty country folks would lie
In springtime…etc.
This carol they began that hour
With a hey and a ho and a hey nonino,
How that life was but a flower
In springtime…etc.
And therefore take the present time
With a hey and a ho and a hey nonino,
For love is crowned with the prime
In springtime…etc.
If you’re reading this on a sunny morning, open the window and listen to the birds singing. They will be telling you that if you are young, and it is springtime, and you are not in love, then you are absurd.
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