is a reference to W.B. Yeats's poem 'When You Are Old' (1893), which is inspired by (and is indeed a rather loose adaptation) of Pierre de Ronsard's famous sonnet 'Quand vous serez bien vieille' (When You Are Very Old). Both poems use a similar theme, in the sense that the speaker addresses a young woman, foreseeing a future where she is an old woman by the fire, remembering how the poet loved her for her pilgrim soul and sorrows for her changing face.
The meaning of Pierre de Ronsard's work on the subject matter of love itself, however, one can read in his famous poetic collection 'Les Amours', published in 1552, which drew inspiration from the Petrarchan tradition of love sonnets, particularly those dedicated to his muses, Cassandre, Marie, and Hélène. His later 'Sonnets pour Hélène' collection (1578) showcases then a much more intense and less mythic depiction of love, featuring themes of the aging lover's desperate plea to his beloved. Thus old age doesn't diminish love as such, but maturity sure makes it a lot more serious ❤
