Letter 3041: The strength of my health is beginning to rally — it is only fair that a steady stream of letters should now be...
The strength of my health is beginning to rally — it is only fair that a steady stream of letters should now be expected from me. Let this recovery hold, though winter's harshness often threatens it. The process of convalescence is extremely delicate and fragile, and health looks for the aid of milder skies before the doctors' hands can do their work. You must think I have made the art of healing responsible for the length of my illness! I want us to break the memory of bad times with the charm of a joke.
But I must also say something about Repentinus, an excellent young man, whose constant attendance I missed. His modesty, I believe, kept him away, when confidence drawn from your introduction should have brought him forward. Yet there will be a better occasion when he will understand that he should not have held back from a man whom your repeated testimonials had taught him to trust.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.
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