If you want to know
the way to my heart
give me books
not new books
give me old dog eared ragged tales
give me a portal to another world
where lovers love and poets dream
where your heart breaks
and is made anew
with every turn of the page

give me a stepping stone into paradise
were every sunset and sunrise
is written within a paragraph
making my eyes shine
with it's reflection through the page
let me be transported from this world
to another within my mind

give me books that tell tales of adventure
of victory and of courage
where hearts have been broken
and loved and lifted within it's pages
were tears have blurred the ink
and I add my own to their count

give me books that smell of sweet vanilla
and almonds
whose pages are yellowed with time
of centuries past

And I will cherish them
I will hold them to my chest
as if it were the only love I deserve
I will keep them safely under my pillow
and they will be as your love for me
a love that keeps me awake at night
as it helps me to sleep

give me books
and I will
love you forever.