My heart throbbed with Love's expectations
As he pressed his lips to my ear;
Passion's voice eagerly whispered
Forbidden words I longed to hear

Each kiss evoked thrills beyond measure ---
How they left me gasping for air;
But, O, when his face rested on mine
And his fingers tangled my hair!

So warm was his breath and his sighing,
Like the embers of passion's fire;
Then a gentle stroke of his hand
Ignited the flames of desire

I smiled as he struggled to tell me
What his eyes so clearly revealed;
But no words had to be spoken --
The fate of our love had been sealed

So close was the blissful surrender,
I could feel the beats of his heart;
So close to ecstasy  . . .  and then,
Suddenly, it all fell apart!

The warbling of a bird awoke me,
Then my eyes caught the sun's first beam;
So close had I come to Heaven . . .
But it was no more than a  dream

I heard the cries of his broken heart --
How it begged for the pain to cease!
So compelling was its lament,
I tenderly gathered each piece

The moon glowed with a pale radiance
As he revealed his doleful plight:
The scornful deceit of a woman
Caused hope and trust to take flight

Each word he spoke flew like a dagger,
Piercing my heart mercilessly;
My own despair, caused by cruel deceit,
Was a blight on Love's memory

In our pain we found a common link --
Hearts doomed to deceit's damnation;
But Fate's course was soon to be altered . . .
O, sweet joy of liberation!

Unhappy memories flew from our hearts
As if on the wings of a dove;
And deceitful lies melted like snow
Upon the sacred fires of our love

Now a joyous dawn greets us each day,
Pain and woe are in full retreat;
On this twisted, rocky path called Life
True Love's radiance now guides our feet

Don't idly sing love songs to the wind ---
A troubled heart might be lurking near;
What a loathsome task to have to rescind
Loving words it was not meant to hear

Tread with caution, lest you wake the beast
That's held captive in some desperate heart;
When from its ******* Hope has been released,
It becomes fair game for Cupid's dart

Crumbs of Love that are carelessly tossed
Might be hungrily devoured in haste;
Once that bridge to Paradise has been crossed,
O, what pain when steps must be retraced!

Use due caution before you declare
Unwavering love to a distraught heart;
Deceitful words, though delivered with flair,
Carry the sting of a poisoned dart

Words of love are messengers of Hope
That allow earthbound hearts to take flight;
But lies and deceit weave the fatal rope
That binds lonely hearts to their sad plight

Our winter sun has set ---
The days grow shorter now;
The love that we share brings not one regret,
And so I make this vow:

I shall remember you
When through that dark abyss
I journey alone, as we all must do,
When doomed by Death's vile kiss

And when you've reached Death's shore,
Marooned by Life's fierce tide,
I'll search for you, and mournfully implore
Quick passage to your side

My cries will resonate
Throughout Eternity,
And if there be a Divine Magistrate,
I'll beg on bended knee

And as I seek your hand
In realms extraordinaire,
What joy will be mine in that foreign land
To find you waiting there

Death's mandates may be stern
But Love need not obey,
For Love defies Death, showing no concern
For Life's sad yesterday

And we'll not flinch at chance,
Nor will despair dictate;
In this realm of eternal circumstance
Love has no fear of Fate

And how we shall rejoice
When our souls reunite
To bear witness to and vow with one voice
The Love that Death could not smite!

Somehow you wandered into my world ---
I don't know how you found your way!
The path was unmarked and overgrown,
No welcome signs were on display

I kept my door locked, and curtains drawn,
No light streamed from the window pane;
And yet, you dared to knock at my door
And enter my dreary domain

But now that you're here I realize
How wretched loneliness can be;
And I give thanks to the Star of Love
That guided your footsteps to me

Ponderous stones of distrust and fear
Weighed on my heart many a day;
Somehow you trampled those stones to dust,
And Love gently blew them away

Winds of despair extinguished Love's fire,
But somehow you relit the flame;
Now I find myself reaching for dreams
I never thought I could reclaim

Yes, dark clouds still gather overhead ---
Life must pander to misery;
But since you wandered into my world . . .
Somehow, it doesn't matter to me

When Life's darkest clouds gather over me,
I seek shelter from impending storms;
Curtains are drawn closed, all the doors secured ---
And soon Life's grotesque profile transforms

Darkness spreads its arms like a faithful friend,
Offering comfort and asylum here;
(I'd rather not see what lurks in the light --
What we can't see we tend not to fear)

In my solitude, peace and harmony
Join to banish thoughts of bitterness;
Soon yesterday's pains fade and slip away ---
Precious gift of sweet Forgetfulness!

And should the anguish prove unbearable
My beleaguered soul succumbs to prayer;
Please, don't pity me . . . I've been here before . . .
Misery always seeks its darkest lair

But I find that Time, with its healing hands
Soothes and calms the tempests of the mind,
And from my shelter I emerge, renewed,
Leaving Life's most loathsome hours behind

Soon I'll set sail for an unknown shore,
So I've rigged the mast as best I could,
My destination's a mystery . . .
And I fear -- maybe more than I should

If turbulent waves capsize my boat
That would be the least of my fears,
For I've survived the vagaries of Love --
More than once I've drowned in my own tears

At times I've tripped on Love's tangled vines,  
So I'm not concerned I might fall;
Life's storms battered me relentlessly,
But I stood fast and weathered them all

Death may inflict nights as black as coal,
Freezing winds that could turn flames to ice;
But Life's fickle ways have tempered me
For just such reckless rolls of the dice

But who's to say what perils may lurk
In the darkness of Death's corridor;
Will peace prevail, or some unknown dread
When my eyes close and I breathe no more?

Knowing I must break my bond with Earth,
Just the notion shakes me to the core . . .
Taken from this world against my will,
Exiled from my home  . . . forevermore!