1. My experiences have warned me of associating with the fickle
I have even come to dislike keeping company with my own shadow

2. There is no vinegar in them when adversity strikes
I said I have nothing but my own vinegar to ward it off

3. They all show affection in times of ease
But shun you in hardship

4. So I isolated myself from them
For in your seclusion from them lies the soul's respite from caution and humiliation