Don't listen to me when I say
I didn't see you look my way
Because the flowers sprung abloom
The moment you entered the room

Don't believe me when I run
It's confrontations that I shun
That drive my mind to gears away
From safe zones where I've ought to stay

Don't listen to me since I tried
To bear the feelings that I hide
Which stem from years of risks unclaimed
And in this stalemate, we remained

Don't listen to my mouth's white lies
But look to the joy in my eyes
For it is in them you will see
The message meant for only thee

The person you meet at the wrong time is not for you to have.

You never meet the right person at the wrong time;
the right person for you is, in a word, timeless.

The person you're destined for is timeless.
You won't have to struggle with time, or any force of nature, to be with that person.
It just comes just as easy as Love itself, seamless and organic.

I'll wait.
If time is not on my side right now,
I'll wait.
So if ever there was a chance that you are the right person, I don't want my impatience or immaturity to cause you to become the wrong one.

The morning came
And with a hint of rain
The sun rose high

I searched your face
In rumpled sheets
In busy streets
I looked for you

The crowds pushed forward
Too busy to care
For mundane things

You heard my voice
The thundering jeers
Of distant fears
I whispered softly.

"It's not the constant adventures,
But everyday gestures

It's not what you bring to the table,
But bring out in your partner

It's not proven to the world
But to each other."

When you set out on your journey
To traverse in seas unknown,
You will meet a set of characters
Who will test you to the bone:

You will hear such glorious voices
From the waters of below
Only stoop a bit, to glimpse of
The few sirens that lay low
With a wonder, you may doubt that
You have witnessed great beauty
The many scales they've fought to hide
Will in time, reveal so clearly

You will come across sea merchants
Who'll speak lengthy promises
Don't accept their words too quickly
Or their small venom doses
Gold to the eye, sweet to the tongue,
Their words drip like bee's honey
Yet to the thirst you've long to fill
So unquenchably sticky

When you find some shipwrecked sailors
Who are also lost at sea
Take them on board and you'll find that
They become your best mate-y
Keep them close, take good care of them
You will need them near the end
When you hit that last tidal wave
And your ship's about to bend

You will come by some sea pirates
Who will win you like a friend
When the seas get rough and rowdy
To you they will all depend
Don't believe their charming banter
They will empty up your lot
And then leave you stranded, lifeless,
Just to steal your golden spot

If you find a distant lighthouse
Do not fear to get too close
There you'll find such rare occasions
And gain gold you can't dispose
They will make you see the wonder
Of the smallness of your ship
And narrate those distant countries
For your never-ending trip

When you set out on your journey
To traverse in seas unknown,
You will sail through different waters
That will test you to the bone:

You will face a wave of troubles
That may come at an instant
Hold the ropes and brace the weather
Sunshine won't be too distant
Don't be too blinded by the rain
Don't get swept away by wind
For your greatest battle to face
Is not the outside, but in

Always remember your compass
For it knows you more them
It will guard your own sanity
Like a vault of precious gems
Don't believe them when they tell you
To exchange your own for theirs
You will lose your soul on the way
In search of approving heirs

At times you will sail still waters
But in these don't be deceived
For they come in strange intervals
In small bursts to be received
Do not chase after such waters
Those who did had died at sea
Not a name to be remembered
Nor a real captain to thee

Above all else, remember this--

When you land in shores uncertain
When your mates have all disappeared
When your compass has been stolen
When the journey's worse than you feared
When you stare death right in the face
When sea monsters outnumber you
When nothing falls right into place
When there is nothing left to do

--Don't lose sight of the North Star
In the land and seas you roam
It's your constant, day and night
Until you have returned Home.

Our hearts
Are more
Than the
Sum of
Their parts.

When I was five,
My dad told me
"The world is tough,
So you have to be tough."

He told me
My grandfather taught him
The same thing.
"Tough love,"
They dubbed it.

Eighteen years later
I discovered that
Tough love is a myth:

Love is never tough.
It boasts of vulnerability to
Unforeseen and unnecessary pain
By the one
You have given access to.
It will be your compass
As you navigate the
Unexplained and uncountable reasons
Why you chose to stay put
When all the world was against you,
Why you chose to let go
When your heart whispered otherwise.

Love is many things
And also not many things
It is gentle, but never weak
It is forgiving, but never naive
It is honest, but never offensive
It is sincere, but never foolish.
But love is never tough.