Petrarch - Poetry

Click on the 'Poetry' tag for the whole series.

The next entry in the book is from the Italian poet, Petrarch.  This translation is from the Elizabethan poet, Thomas Wyatt.  The title is 'Remembrance'.

They flee from me, that sometime me did seek
With naked foot, stalking in my chamber:
I have seen them gentle, tame and meek,
That now are wild, and do not remember
That sometime they put themselves in danger
To take bread at my hand; and now they range
Busily seeking with a continual change.

Thanked be fortune it hath been otherwise
Twenty times better; but once, in special,
In thin array, after a pleasant guise,
When her loose gown from her shoulders did fall,
And she caught in her arms long and small,
There with all sweetly did me kiss
And softly said, "Dear heart, how like you this?"

It was no dream; I lay broad waking:
But all is turned, thorough my gentleness,
Into a strange fashion of forsaking;
And I have leave to go of her goodness,
And she also to use newfangleness.
But since that I so kindly am served,
I would fain know what she hath deserved.

I'm not sure with this one.  The first stanza sounds like the author is writing about deer.  The second one is clearly about a loved one and yes, I can understand the comparison between women and deer.  Both alike in gentleness and grace.  Both can be timid and hard for men to 'snare'.  In fact, that comparison vividly reminds me of my teenage years!
The third stanza confuses me though.  The poet is not asleep, so it's actually happening.  But the poet is too gentle so it seems as if he is forsaking her?  Do I have that right?  And they are trading her goodness for his 'newfangleness'?  The last two lines make some sort of sense to me, he is saying that he is doing so well from the trade that he wonders how he can make it up to her.  Maybe.
Of interesting note, the book that I've got 'The 100 Best Poems of All Time' is clear in attributing this poem to Petrarch.  The internet wants to say that the whole deal belongs to Thomas Wyatt.