Excerpt from "My Mind to Me a Kingdom Is" by Edward Dyer (1543-1607)
I've always liked Edward Dyer's "My Mind to Me a Kingdom Is." Though a renowned poet among his contemporaries, Dyer has too little surviving verse to sustain his fame in modern times. This poem, likewise, is only arguably attributed to him. While some scholars like William Oldys (1696-1761) argue that this poem speaks for the typical Dyer who despises greed for money and life at court, some like Steven W. May (contemporary) argue that this is a poem by Edward de Vere (1550-1604) but misattributed. So? We stay out of the weeds.
Two things I like about this stanza: the way the poet perceives reality and the way the poet feels about himself. This is not a voice of a die-hard Romantic who defies or denies reality; this is a mature and cultured tone that utters awareness of one's limited storage of material wealth and yet suffices on that. "Little store" is his awareness of meager resources; "I am rich" is his contented mind speaking.
With such awareness of reality and sagacity of a contented mind, the poet feels, beyond self-sufficient, that he has more than he needs and therefore offers to give, to leave something for others. Having little-->feeling plenty-->willing to share; having much-->feeling in want-->craving for more. Before positive psychology came to be an independent field of study, Dyer had made clear some happenings and becomings of the contentedly rich (the poor-yet-rich) and the mentally impoverished (the rich-but-poor).
The former are blessed with joy and wisdom to give and to live; the latter are destined to yearn and to earn, pining themselves away. Sounds bitter, doesn't it? Not if it comes from the mouth of a nobleman who witnessed enough spurn and snobbery for him to serve his poetic justice.
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