You are my heart and upon it I have etched my secret hopes for you: My hope that you burn brightly, and long— That your most heartfelt desires lash themselves Upon the winds of passion And that your heart’s love flows Out of eyes and mouth to the tuneful ears Of those who surround you. That hope survives and blooms in the inclement weather Of disappointment— That you find and etch your secret desires For your own child— And that when I am gone, That in a flowering corner of your soul That you feel my love for you—