What happiness I glean from these hours
Strolling Eden's garden with you;
Severest storms become mild showers,
For all tempests are now shared by two

Two fraught hearts, weighted down by the chains
Of loneliness found each other
Amidst the dust of love's remains,
Igniting sparks Fate could not smother

Drawn together by despair's drear pain,
Our hearts met on that rocky cliff;
No longer would solitude's rain
Overflow and sink our fragile skiff

Timeworn remnants of two shattered hearts
Reassembled, beating as one;
O, what joy, the sum of all parts!
Such love's seldom seen under the sun

Two frail hearts altered their dismal Fate,
Love's light now dwells where darkness had been;
How blessed was the day that Eden's gate
Opened widely and welcomed us in!

Never again will I say "I love you,"
Feeble was the passion returned;
But I swear by heaven above you,
I'll regard this as a lesson learned

Maybe I will miss him from time to time,
But he'll never hear it from me;
Perhaps I'll cry at the midnight chime
For this pipe dream that could never be

But for a brief time I flaunted a smile
Dismissing those dark hours of tears;
Happiness walked with me for a while,
Erasing the pain of lonely years

Why do hearts engage in such foolish games?
When someone wins, someone must lose;
And when our dreams have gone up in flames,
Self-reproach comes to collect its dues

Then Hope raised its head and spoke to my heart:
"If you don't play, how can you win?
Forget the past and make a fresh start . . . "
Oh, what the hell, let the games begin!

Why is it that petals fall from the rose,
Leaving only thorns upon the stem?
And why do lilies bend low to the ground?
It's so out of character for them

Well, roses know when love has deceived,
The petals they let fall are their tears;
Strangely, flowers can sense love's fickle ways,
In their own way, they vent mortal fears

And when lilies are seen bending their heads,
You can be sure they're in deep despair;
Love has once again shattered someone's heart,
Setting dreams adrift on sullied air

But Love will not be held accountable,
A free spirit -- thus it must remain,
Bringing unbelievable happiness,
Or rendering unbearable pain

And so I just glue the petals back on,
(The rose thinks my tears are morning's dew);
While I run a wire through the lily's stem,
I lift its head, and say "This love is true"

O, I'm aware such folly has its price --
Pretense stains life in a somber hue;
But when Love dons a dark, deceitful robe,
Just what is a broken heart to do?

So I start each day with my hope renewed,
Yet, anticipating old sorrow;
Full well I know as long as this life lasts,
A new love will find me tomorrow

And my life goes on - it's a brand new day,
Another rose is starting to bloom,
As I wait for petals to fall -- and they will,
I'll plant more lilies -- just in case -- if there's room

I find my sorrows to be lightened
When I sing of things that grieve my heart;
When the threat of despair is heightened,
It is then my feeble warblings start;
At first, notes take off like birds, frightened
By a storm, as to and fro they dart

But soon my refrains flow like a stream,
Weakening the throbbing pulse of grief;
One by one they fade into a dream,
Bringing to my heart blessed relief;
But how I tire of altering Life's scheme,
Rustling its script like a petty thief

It's not joy that causes me to sing,
(Heaven sighs when my songs reach its spheres)
With each note, another tear takes wing,
Each song freeing pent up woes and fears;
Without song,  profound would be the sting
Of Love's cruel deceit when it appears

And if the strains of a mournful song
Escape from my windows late at night,
My heart's remembering some grievous wrong --
A melody helps the pain take flight;
Never has my heart feigned to be strong,
A frail warrior, it yields to its plight

But my tears alone cannot atone
For the wretched pain life sends each day;
When buds of loneliness are full-blown,
I weave each bloom into a bouquet;
With arms filled with flowers I walk alone,
Composing new songs along the way

How meaningless life appears to be  
When Love withdraws its comforting ray;  
Harmony turns into entropy . . .
Chaotic impulses have their way

Though the sun rose to announce the day,
It matters not that it rose at all!
Darkness prevails when Love goes astray,
The shore weeps, though the tides rise and fall

Should a deluge submerge hill and dale,
Then oceans be scorched by the sun's breath,
Without Love, such calamities pale
When compared to solitude's slow death

Nowhere else in the vast universe
Can the harmony of Love be found;
So at every chance let us rehearse
Love's sweet symphony - Let it resound!

For Love is all that really matters --
And there is no doubt that life is grand
When that wall of loneliness shatters,
And Love walks beside us, hand in hand

To the four winds I scattered all my dreams,
Hoping they'd ascend to Heaven's door;
But that was so long ago -- now it seems
Love was the one dream that failed to soar

When will he come, does he know of my plight?
Someone needs to warn him to beware
Of the darkness that is mine, day and night;
Will he search where no one else would dare?

How will he find me, when no friendly star
Offers to light the path to my door?
Might this task prove to be a bridge too far?
Such sobering thoughts shake me to the core

Will he falter when the path twists and turns,
Will he ford the rivers though they rise?
On the windowsill my last candle burns,
Will the flame attract his straining eyes?

Time grows short, and I've reason to despair:
Fate has a will mightier than my own;
As hope withdraws, I raise my hands in prayer --
The seeds of panic have been sown!

On nights like this, my heart panics,
Life's meaning loses clarity;
And why is the moon so radiant?
I've no need of its charity

On nights like this, all seems hopeless;
If the sun could wake from its sleep,
Its warmth and light could not dispel
This cold darkness that runs so deep

On nights like this, sleep goes astray,
And Paradise comes within view,
Ah! But cruel angels guard the gate,
Refusing to let Love pass through

On nights like this, being denied
The pleasures that make life divine,
I dream of the forbidden fruit
And pretend it may yet be mine

On nights like this, prayers gently fall
From my lips, then bitter tears start;
But no comfort comes -- peace eludes
My distraught, long-suffering heart

What good is night without the thrill
Of a tender, passionate kiss,
Without the warmth of Love's embrace?
O, the torment of nights like this!