I Stole a Rose

I stole a rose in the market today!
And I thought your name as I darted away.

The shopkeeper’s shout made me turn ‘round and glance,
but his nod and his smile said, “Go on, take a chance!”

I ran down the cobblestone alleys,
taking shortcuts we discovered as kids.

Then all of a sudden, time seemed to stop.
And the whole of you welled up in my mind:

    I’ve loved you since I first saw your smile,
    As we’d walk to grade school together.

    I’ve loved you since I first heard your laugh,
    And it echoes in my dreams every night.

    I’ve loved you since I first held your hand,
    And I know now I should have held tight…

Somehow we’ve drifted apart,
but there’s a place for you still in my heart!
Today I’m in a chance-taking mood,
and so on this late afternoon:

I leave this rose…
      on your doorstep…
                             just to see…

                                                           ­                                  I Found a Rose

                                                     I found a rose on my doorstep today!
                                                    It’s made me smile and feel quite gay.

                                        I wondered a while if by accident it was lost,
                           or perhaps something someone had casually tossed?

                    But, there’s a boy on my mind who I used to know well,
                                                and my intuition tells me not to dismiss:

                                          I liked him since the first day I met him,
                                                         and often I replay our first kiss.

                 Though we’ve both gone our own separate ways now,
                                        my memories of being with him are bliss.

                               Could it be that he’s remembered me likewise,
                           and has proffered what my heart’s long desired?
  
                                                            I’d be foolish to not take a chance,
                                                         ­     and fail to believe an old dream.
                                          
               ­                I know a shop in the market where roses are sold,
                      so I’ll summon my courage to make a move quite bold!

                                                       I was dizzy and not thinking clearly,
                                                                     as I gleefully selected a rose.
                                                 The shopkeeper looked at me strangely:
                                               I wonder... is there something he knows?

                                                                              Now I leave this rose…
                                                                on your doorstep…
                                                       just to say…

I Found a Rose, II

I found a rose on my doorstep tonight!
And my heart is filled with delight!

I’m smiling and laughing and so full of glee,
just thinking what a wonder it is she chose me!

   I’m off now to pay a visit to the love of my life,
   and I’ll not hold back any feelings.
   But I do have one secret I’ll not tell her yet:
   someday I’m going to make her my wife!