By your own hand

Love’s wildest son

Stepping in time with torment

A love of the hunt

Leads to love of the death

 

So you trod on the flower

That they saw through the window

So many times as children

Without a song to bring out the sun

 

In crashing down with the rain

You took the water in your mouth

And tasted the earth

Spluttered the salt and gravel

 

It was more than just a sign

That your gates were closing

I saw the key turning

Locked by your own hand

 

Blind love left your kiss

And true friend left your hand

Their forgiving side is dead

From thinking of your falling

 

The soft echo that you heard all over

“Life is no more permanent

Than the love that left you”

The parting guest in the final hour

 

Do you play that harp alone now

Willing the sleeping night to answer?

Can you still wrestle a note from it

Before hushing the sounds of morning?

 

And would you ever dare to tell

A later love about these times?

Or dare to find the true relation

Between time and peace?

 

Knowing that time may slow the tears

But tears have means to slow the time

Reviews

[Ghost of Jupiter]

gorgeous write...I loved it!

[FJ Davis]

Elegant and insightful, Mark!
A well-crafted, wisdom-infused offering.

[Junert]

Well written. Nice job.

[Alpris]

"Life is no more permanent than the love that left you"
Wow... powerful, powerful quote. This piece had a strong element of melancholy to it, and its quite evident the writer himself is that of the rare and wise kind. Great piece of work, loved it; especially your great choice of words.

[Alpris]

Ah, but poetry comes from the heart. And those who write such moving pieces shouldn't be so modest; wouldn't you agree?

[Sky]

"Knowing that time may slow the tears/But tears have means to slow the time". This is amazing! I love how you have flipped the script. The ending is captivating, and so the entire piece. Great job!

[TheJordBaker]

hard to add anything that hasn't already been said; truly moving, inspired and tremendously moving and provocative. top writing!!

[Owlgirl]

Wow, great writing! I love the flow of the poem and the descriptive word choice is amazing! It's the questions that drive us mad, and this is great food for thought as well as answers. Simply amazing.

[eglantine]

Third stanza is def where it's at. Great imagery and conversational poem.

[recantichize]

from the first line to last, this is a provocative and beautiful piece. each line is lovely on its own, each stanza on its, and the overall poem itself; each piece is a complete success. thank you for this.