The Cambridge Carol Book/Get ivy and hull, woman, deck up

by Thomas Tusser

X. GET IVY AND HULL, WOMAN, DECK UP

1.Get ivy and hull, woman, deck up thine house,
And take this same brawn for to seethe and to souse;
Provide us good cheer, for thou know'st the old guise;
Old customs, that good be, let no man despise.
At Christmas be merry, and thank God of all,
And feast thy poor neighbours, the great and the small:
Yea, all the year long have an eye to the poor,
And God shall send luck to keep open thy door.

2.Good fruit and good plenty do well in thy loft,
Then lay for an orchard and cherish it oft:
The profit is mickle, the pleasure is much;
At pleasure with profit few wise men will grutch.
At Christmas be merry, and thank God of all,
And feast thy poor neighbours, the great and the small:
Yea, all the year long have an eye to the poor,
And God shall send luck to keep open thy door.