The sunset hour darkens my door,
A shadow moves across the floor;
There he stands in luminous air .....
The answer to my daily prayer

My trembling hands follow his form,
The cold night air turns, oh, so warm;
I taste his kiss scorching the air,
My fingers stroke his tangled hair

Just particles and flecks of dust!
I despair and turn in disgust;
He pulls me back and holds me tight,
My spirit love, my errant knight

Sensual feelings are unending,
O, what torment this pretending!
When from reality I flee,
It's then his spirit comes to me

How I love him ..... how I need him!
Lord, don't let this beacon grow dim!
But his love is not mine to own,
And soon the night finds me alone

Prayers can't change the rules of this game:
Here comes Fate to blow out the flame;
A foolish dream, a wish in vain .....
Companion from another plane

Face of moonlight, kiss born of dreams,
Love's longing taken to extremes;
Existing in some realm above,
He's all I have ..... my spirit love

With faltering steps, slower grows my stride,
Kicking stones, I stumble on my way;
Walking such wretched paths, God knows I've tried
To rise above all this Earthly fray

Sadly,  the heavens are not mine to soar,
Mangled pinions make for hopeless flight;
Only in dreams am I raised from Earth's floor --
To remain earthbound is my sad plight

I've been told lovers walk among the stars,
But the heavens are not mine to fly;
This Earth, this prison with its accursed bars
Is my domain 'til the day I die

The Fountain of Hope can no longer sate;
Sands of Time spill from my dimming eyes;
I spend these days reflecting on my fate,
Struggling to sort the truth from the lies

Yet, I still reach for what I cannot gain
While ghosts of a sad past surround me;
Heartless creatures! While they scoff at my pain,
I cry for Love that never found me

O, Fate, at times I find your style profane ---
Cold as ice, unmoved by my despair;
But the hour is late, no doubt I'll remain
Earthbound, never to breathe Love's sweet air

My pen hovers over a blank page
As red ink drips from my wounded heart;
The pain has been stirred by some senseless word,
Now my loneliness awakes with a start

Why are all my words penned in red ink?
The heart must deliver its lament!
Sad words find release, bringing a strange peace
When too long the heartaches of love are pent

And why do my verses taste of salt ---
Not of the sea and its gypsy waves
That come and go, free of all care and woe,
But from tears shed for the love my heart craves

How much must a heart invest in love
Before it receives a dividend?
To reach its goal, it pays a hefty toll,
And yet, the journey seems to have no end

So where lies the blessed love I seek?
Have I left some leaf or stone unturned?
Might there be a flower in my sunset hour
Yet to blossom, for which my heart has yearned?

Lord, take pity on my foolish dreams!
Shine your torchlight on my dark despair;
And when I implore, storming Heaven's door,
Turn the key and permit me entry there

I sense the raging fury of a storm  
That's unfolding as dark clouds gather;  
Hold me close,  and talk to me of love,    
Or sing me a song, if you'd rather  

Just as the bee hums his serenade
To the rose that waits in solitude,
Hover over me, and sing your song,
Talk to me of love ..... I'm in the mood  

Talk to me of love, have you not seen
Angels straining when you whisper low?
Though divine, they cannot comprehend
How my roses blossom in the snow

Through torrential rains my sun still shines,
Rainbows stretch across my midnight sky;
Love's gifts dismiss time and circumstance,
Baffled Angels don't know how or why

How can words of love possess such power?
If true love is what the heart dictates,
Then the words that flow are absolute --
Just watch as they trample Heaven's gates

And together, boldly we enter
To join the blest throngs that dwell above;
It is on such nights that I rejoice --
When you whisper your sweet words of love!

Wait no longer, talk to me of love,
Profound feelings come to torture me:
Abandonment, loneliness, then tears --
A foreboding of calamity

And here it is ......  the warble of a bird --
Now my eyes perceive the dawn's first beam;
I don't want to hear what's coming next .....
"Wake up, Lora, this was but a dream!"

I'm just waiting for Love's knock at my door,
I've nothing better to do with my time;
Sometimes I count grains of sand on the shore,
Once in a while I compose a rhyme

Pay me no mind, I'm just biding my time,
I'll gather some kindling, then feed the birds;
Winter's threatening to bolt recklessly --
In its wake, I'll pen more idle words

Do you know how many teardrops it takes
To fill a glass after the wine is gone?
Many nights, when sleep refuses to come,
I sit counting my tears until dawn

How long can the flame of patience stay lit
On that candle upon my window sill,
Hoping its light beckons Love to my door,
And yet doubtful that it ever will

At times I despair, darkness overtakes
My mind, while hopeless thoughts start to unfold,
But the heart is wise and its spirit leaps
To stoke the embers that have grown cold

How long will I wait for Love to arrive?
'Til the blind man sees, and the deaf man hears!
But pardon me, I must be going now,
The wine is gone ..... time to count my tears

Tonight I'll wait to see the moon's face
Hovering above that cypress tree;
Then I'll drift off to my favorite place .....
The other side of reality

Into that land where passion runs free,
And wild fantasies lurk everywhere;
My body goes limp .... Love carries me
Like a hungry lion to its lair

I'm held captive, unable to flee,
But not one complaint do I proclaim;
Love fans the embers of fantasy,
And suddenly my heart is aflame

Soon the flames are enkindling two hearts,
An embrace and a kiss enchant me;
At last Cupid's free to throw his darts,
(A fantasy day cannot grant me!)

Phantom love flourishes in the dark
Where truth cannot invade its domain;
My hunger for love has lit the spark --
Now my spirit seeks this astral plane

Where do I go when I fall asleep?
Surely, the Edge of Eternity!
And so among the shadows I creep,
Where Love dispels its uncertainty

My worldly possessions are meager,
In this life I'm but a poor renter;
Is it shocking that I'm so eager
Through this blest passageway to enter!

If Love cannot find me in the light,
Then let my eyes permanently close;
Loneliness is banished from my sight
While my eyes are shut in sweet repose

So let me dwell where day's dormant dreams
Can awaken with temerity,
And woes are drowned in Love's sparkling streams ....
The other side of reality