And yet again the night finds me alone
As this day slips into tomorrow;
Though my reason for happiness has flown,
Missing him is a beautiful sorrow

It may seem quite a melancholy task
Carrying this lost love to my grave;
Strangely, contentment wears many a mask --
His memory keeps me its joyous slave

All my gladness now dwells in yesterday,
Love's blissful past rests in twilight dreams
Where golden bees still sip the flower's spray,
And wild roiling seas become gentler streams

Time has purified the love we once shared,
In this realm of dreams there are no flaws;
Love thrives with a certainty never dared,
And is governed by joy's eternal laws

I now see his love through a different eye,
It lends greater comfort than before;
And the fear that his love may one day die
Lies in peaceful repose forevermore

Until this clay frame sets my spirit free,
I'll have memories from which to borrow;
Though seemingly strange my utterance may be,
Missing him is a beautiful sorrow!

The grains of sand grow fewer each day,
The task of the hourglass is at hand;
Shamed by poor decisions that paved my way,
Tears flow like pearls from a broken strand  

My heart was drowning in loneliness --
Ten fathoms deep, and still descending,
Crying mutely while sinking in distress,
Begging for a merciful ending

Then my heart was shaken to its core
And in golden laurels it was framed
When unexpected love knocked at the door,
Errant love, just begging to be claimed

Why did I not let my heart take flight?
Like a bashful ****** it waited,
With expectations of that wondrous night
When passion's hunger would be sated!

How clearly I see in retrospect
A foolish choice I could not then see;
Deprived of love, and weakened by neglect,
My heart now stands in judgement of me

These days, slow and labored is my stride,
As my conscience plots its alibi;
I found a place where my regrets can hide,
But loneliness vows to testify

Guilty! is the verdict that I hear --
For my folly, a price must be paid;
Eden's garden had never been so near,
With its fruits so temptingly displayed

Fraught with doubt, I turned his love away,
Sending hope back to its darkened lair;
And for this offense I face Judgement Day,
My wronged heart has no mercy to spare

For what purpose has morning come again,
Did my cries awake the sleeping sun?
As dawn tolls its bell, the moon bids farewell,
And the sun's rays unfold, one by one

And still no response when I call to you,
Can your ears not hear my mournful hymn?
Now through tear-filled eyes I watch the sun rise,
And so begins the day, bleak and grim

How does Heaven justify such cruelty,
Taking from me what I most desire?
With a searing flame, Death's cruel arrow came
And pierced your heart, setting my world afire

Reluctantly, birds gather on branches,
Sadly, to sing their songs they decline;
While I cry for you, their cries are heard, too;
O sing, faithful friends, this pain is mine!

A lonely wind now surges through my world,
Missing you cuts my heart like a knife;
My heart's in tatters ..... nothing else matters,
It was your love that defined my life

Now shadows lengthen as the darkness falls,
And tomorrow's pain, well within view,
While I hold tight to your memory tonight,
I may smile ..... but then I'll cry for you

Though he's gone, life goes on as before --
The rising sun still announces dawn;
At night the moon paces my bedroom floor,
But now my lonely heart cries out "Begone!"

Without him, seasons still come and go,
Callous Spring comes strewing her flowers;
I pay no heed to Nature's to and fro,
In despair is how my heart spends its hours

Since he left, the joys I knew have flown,
At once, like startled birds taking wing;
The last of the summer's roses have blown,
Not a trace remains of our fairy ring

When he left, he took my hopes and dreams,
Strange, he was so different from the rest;
Now my abandoned heart silently screams
While I stare at the sun like one possessed

O, yes, I know his love was not real!
Just a seed sown by a desperate hand,
Expecting to harvest my heart's ideal --
A castle of dreams built upon quicksand

Well, now there are no seeds left to sow,
But in failure I have found meaning:
Imagined love can never thrive and grow,
And grants harvests too sparse for the gleaning

Let the wounded bird take wing,
Though dismal may be his fate;
Should he overcome this cruel sting,
His triumph he'll celebrate

Let the willow bend and weep;
Though it appears to be weak,
It would tell you its roots run deep
If it were able to speak

Let the wolf howl to the moon --
He has the right to be heard;
Morning will be here all too soon,
Then enters the singing bird

Let the spider weave her snare,
For this task she was designed;
While her prey, feeling no despair,
Awaits its cruel fate, resigned

Let love and loneliness brawl,
Let die the things that must die;
Release the tears and let them fall,
And let the broken heart cry

Let me love without constraints --
The sinking boat needs no oar;
Do not preach of sinners and saints
With Death's feet so near my door

Let me taste love's sweetest wine,
And let this shattered heart mend;
Having seen my star of love shine,
Then let the curtain descend

Come, my love, we've no time to waste,
The clock is chiming eleven,
Just enough time to get one last taste
Of the Sweet Elixir of Heaven

Autumn's love is no less sublime
Than Spring's first love, daring and grand;
But the hourglass has turned its last time .....
We must outrun Life's fast-falling sand

Pace cannot be arbitrary ---
The river is starting to freeze;
Hurry, my love, try not to tarry,
If you must, crawl on your hands and knees!

Love is calling in the distance,
Offering us her glorious shroud;
Lest she think we offer resistance,
Let us claim all the joy we're allowed

Autumn's last buds will soon depart,
As icy winds nip at the vine;
Soon nothing will stir this dying heart --
Neither love, nor song, nor vintage wine

Time is anxious to take its toll,
The sun's setting ..... let us make haste;
No longer at leisure can we stroll,
Come now, my love .... we've no time to waste!

What artist has dared to lay his brush
Upon this canvas, and vainly strive
To paint life into a dying heart
That surrendered its will to survive?

Only a master would dare this feat,
This assignment so bizarre and rare:
Paint a woman starved of love and joy,
Without revealing her true despair

Study those eyes locked in a cold gaze,
As if hiding unbearable pain;
Who can surmise what hell burns within?
This mute painting will never explain

A tear-moistened smile rests on her lips,
Causing premonitions dark and bleak
To the viewer, who can only guess
What he might hear if those lips would speak

Her empty hands, resting in her lap,
Are clasped together as if in prayer;
Voiceless supplications rise unheard,
A deafening silence fills the air

What artist is this that chose to paint
What the uncaring Fates have decreed:
A life of unending loneliness,
A broken heart, ever meant to bleed

Great artist, your work is now complete,
A masterpiece of duality --
Despair and hope, laced with smiles and tears,
Obscuring her true identity

This painter who dared not sign his name,
Nor from this daunting task, seek release --
Surely, now you recognize his style
As you behold Misery's masterpiece!