Co-religionists

(Sunday).
To Westminster, my Lord being gone before my coming to chapel. I and Mr. Sheply told out my money, and made even for my Privy Seal fees and gratuity money, &c., to this day between my Lord and me.
After that to chappell, where Dr. Fern, a good honest sermon upon “The Lord is my shield.” After sermon a dull anthem, and so to my Lord’s (he dining abroad) and dined with Mr. Sheply. So, to St. Margarett’s, and heard a good sermon upon the text “Teach us the old way,” or something like it, wherein he ran over all the new tenets in policy and religion, which have brought us into all our late divisions.
From church to Mrs. Crisp’s (having sent Will Hewer home to tell my wife that I could not come home to-night because of my Lord’s going out early to-morrow morning), where I sat late, and did give them a great deal of wine, it being a farewell cup to Laud Crisp. I drank till the daughter began to be very loving to me and kind, and I fear is not so good as she should be.
To my Lord’s, and to bed with Mr. Sheply.

Sunday I go to chapel,
I and my money, my money and me.
Teach us a new religion:
to not come home, to go out,
to give a great deal of wine,
to be loving,
to fear.


Erasure poem derived from The Diary of Samuel Pepys, Sunday 2 September 1660.

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