Lystrata
On the outer edge of darkness,
On the other side of sleep,
And beyond the mist, the starkness
Of the landscape makes me weep,
For Lystrata, like a phantom
Glides and shimmers through the trees,
As her hair trails out behind her
At the slightest subtle breeze.
But the sun has not yet risen
So the shadows there are dim,
And the voices in the distance
Mutter words that sound like ‘R.E.M.',
But Lystrata leads me further
Through that one repeating myth,
Where we leave the trees behind us
At the stark edge of the cliff.
I can hear the breakers rolling
On the beach, so far below,
As Lystrata turns toward me,
Cries forever: ‘Now you know! '
But I reach on out to touch her
Almost blinded by my tears,
When her shadow fades before me
As she turns, and disappears!
And I'm driving through the night
Toward some future, cold and bleak,
With her sitting close beside me
Though we very rarely speak,
While the anger and the hurt has
Ravelled, rabid at my brain,
When she said: ‘You know it's over! '
Then I knew - I was insane!
For the darkness closed around me
On that narrow strip of road,
And this dream that would confound me
Kept repeating, like some ode,
That the world had somehow narrowed
To the pinpoint of a beam,
So I swerved into the darkness
And I heard Lystrata scream!
There are phantoms moving greyly
At the other side of sleep,
And their voices still dismay me
As I make that final leap,
For ‘How long? ' would seem to echo
And re-echo through my tears,
As another phantom whispers:
‘Well, it's all of twenty years! '
And Lystrata stands before me
As the blood runs down her face,
‘Once you said that you'd adore me,
But you leave me little grace! '
Then she leaves me in the darkness
And the mist, for me to weep,
At the outer edge of darkness
On the other side of sleep!
David Lewis Paget
poem by David Lewis Paget
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
In Absence
WAKE, do you wake in the dark in the strange far place,
Window and door not set like the ones we knew,
Leaning your face through the dark for another face,
Stretching your arms to the arms that are far from you,
Even as I, through the depth of this darkness, do?
Sleep, do you sleep in the house in the lonely land?
In the lonely room do you hear no steps draw near?
Do you miss in the darkness the hand that implores your hand,
See through the darkness your last dream disappear,
And weep, as I weep, in the outer darkness here?
Dream, do you dream? Nay, never a dream will stay,
Never a phantom is fond, or a vision kind.
Your dreams elude you and fly through the dark my way,
My dreams fly forth to you whom they may not find;
And we in the darkness weep, we weep and are left behind.
poem by Edith Nesbit
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The Dreams
Spare a little candle
Save some light for me
Figures up ahead
Moving in the trees
White skin in linen
Perfume on my wrist
And the full moon that hangs over
These dreams in the mist
Darkness on the edge
Shadows where I stand
I search for the time
On a watch with no hands
I want to see you clearly
Come closer than this
But all I remember
Are the dreams in the mist
These dreams go on when I close my eyes
Every second of the night I live another life
These dreams that sleep when it's cold outside
Every moment I'm awake the further I'm away
Is it cloak n dagger
Could it be spring or fall
I walk without a cut
Through a stained glass wall
Weaker in my eyesight
The candle in my grip
And words that have no form
Are falling from my lips
These dreams go on when I close my eyes
Every second of the night I live another life
These dreams that sleep when it's cold outside
Every moment I'm awake the further I'm away
There's something out there
I can't resist
I need to hide away from the pain
There's something out there
I can't resist
The sweetest song is silence
That I've ever heard
Funny how your feet
In dreams never touch the earth
In a wood full of princes
Freedom is a kiss
But the prince hides his face
From dreams in the mist
These dreams go on when I close my eyes
Every second of the night I live another life
These dreams that sleep when it's cold outside
Every moment I'm awake the further I'm away
These dreams go on when I close my eyes
Every second of the night I live another life
These dreams that sleep when it's cold outside
Every moment I'm awake the further I'm away
song performed by by Heart
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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I Cant Sleep Without You Here
I cant sleep.
Without you here, I just cant sleep.
Its 3AM
And I’m awake again.
Through open eyes, I sing my lonely song, To the silver moonlight.
I am consumed by the lonely darkness, Of the night.
I cant sleep-
Because you seem so far away from me.
I cant sleep-
Because without you, By my side, I feel so lonely.
When I dream- I dream of our love’s delight-
Only to awake, Without you, By my side.
I’m stuck between longing and desire-
As in the darkness, Within my heart burns passions fire.
Without you here, Next to me, It just doesn’t feel right.
In the darkness, You’re my light!
Within my heart burns an unquenchable fire!
There’s so much more
Which I long for
And desire!
And I grow weary of the compromises, We have to make-
But we can both relate.
I cant sleep-
Because you seem so far away from me.
I cant sleep-
Because without you, By my side, I feel so lonely.
Every night without you- I cant help but want to reach out for
More!
Inside my heart-
You’re leaving a road map of all the places we’ve been.
Inside my heart-
Your love has burnt its mark so deep within.
And there’s so much more
For us to long for
And desire!
Within my heart burns passion’s fire!
I cant sleep-
Because you seem so far away from me.
I cant sleep-
Because without you, By my side, I feel so lonely.
I’m weary of the compromises, We have to make-
But you and I can both relate.
Each and every night, I cant help but want to reach out for
More!
And I cant sleep.
Without you here, I just cant sleep.
poem by Philip Alarie
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Darkness
Gene pitney
Darkness, only darkness
Land of shadow
Thats where my heart goes
Now Im alone, Im on my own
Voices, I hear voices
Sounds in the still night everywhere
But youre not there
No, youre not there
Imagination brings you so near
I reach for your lips, but theyre not here
All of my memories are closing in as one
I walk a little faster, than I start to run
Darkness, only darkness
Land of shadow
Thats where my heart goes
Now Im alone, Im on my own
I long to hold you, thrill to your charm
But how can I hold shadows in my arms?
I reach to find you, stumbling through the night
Searching in my sadness, looking for the light
But theres darkness, only darkness
Land of shadow
Thats where my heart goes
Now Im alone, Im on my own
song performed by by Roy Orbison
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Darkness
In darkness
Where my dreams are all too clear
Darkness, darkness
Filled with all the sounds of fear
I hear voices (dont turn out the light)
Calling faraway
I see shadows (dont turn out the light)
Moving, changing shape
And the clock stops
As darkness closes in
I hesitate but its too late
I scream and scream again
I hear colours black and red
I see sounds that fill my head
Ill never read those books again
In darkness
Where my dreams are all too clear
Darkness, darkness
Filled with all the sounds of fear
I hear voices (dont turn out the light)
Calling faraway
I see shadows (dont turn out the light)
Moving, changing shape
Dont turn out the light (dont turn out the light)
Or Ill go over the edge
Dont turn out the light (dont turn out the light)
Or Ill go over the edge
In darkness
Where my dreams are all too clear
Darkness, darkness
Filled with all the sounds of fear
I hear voices (dont turn out the light)
Calling faraway
I see shadows (dont turn out the light)
Moving, changing shape
I hear voices (dont turn out the light)
Calling faraway
I see shadows (dont turn out the light)
Moving, changing shape
song performed by by Human League
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Hope
an angel a bridge
of heart
Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness
Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness
Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness
Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness
Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness Darkness
a light
of humanity tree
Double Agent
Words by neil peart, music by geddy lee and alex lifeson
Where would you rather be?
Anywhere but here
When will the time be right?
Anytime but now
On the edge of sleep,
I was driting for half the night
Anxious and restless,
Pressed down by the darkness
Bound up and wound up so tight
So many decisions, a million revisions
Caught between and light...
Wilderness of mirrors
World of polished steel
Gears and iron chains
Turn the grinding wheel
I run between the shadows
Some are phantoms, some are real
Where would you rather be?
Anywhere but here
When will the time be right?
Anytime but now
The doubt and the fear
I know would all disappear
Anywhere but here
On the edge of sleep,
I heard voices behind the door
The known and the nameless,
Familiar and faceless
My angels and my demons at war
Which one will lose --- depends on what I choose
Or maybe which voice I ignore...
Wilderness of mirrors
Streets of cold desire
My precious sense of honor
Just a shield of rusty wire
I hold against the chaos ---
And the cross of holy fire
Wilderness of mirrors
So easy to deceive
My precious sense of rightness
Is sometimes so naive
So that which I imagine
Is that which I believe
On the edge of sleep, I awoke to a sun so bright
Rested and fearless, cheered by your nearness
I knew which direction was right
The case had been tried by the jury inside
The choice between darkness and light...
song performed by by Rush
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Darkness Of...
Darkness is not the darkness of night
it is the darkness of mind and soul.
darkness is not the darkness of night,
it is the darkness of discrimination between poor and rich.
darkness is not the darkness of night,
it is the darkness of dishonesty.
darkness is not the darkness of night,
it is the darkness of aggravate.
darkness is not the darkness of night,
it is darkness of corruption.
darkness is not the darkness of night,
it is the darkness of indiscipline.
darkness is not the darkness of night,
it is the darkness of animosity.
darkness is not the darkness of night,
it is the darkness of inveterate.
darkness is not the darkness of night,
it is the darkness of perjury.
darkness is not the darkness of night,
it is the darkness that we all brought up inside us,
so, light the lamp of light inside you...
poem by Suniya Garg
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Darkness all around
Theres a darkness thats always around.
Its within the light of the day.
And over takes the sunshine.
There never was any light for me to see.
Never a hand to reach.
Never a ear to hear.
No eye to see my pain.
I accept I'll have darkness forever.
I already no thats my fate.
The darkness looms worse than a shadow.
It like a black cloud.
The darkness is always near.
My pleas it does not adear.
The darkness is called depression.
Once it had its grip.
I knew it would never leave.
poem by Amy Louise Kerswell
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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In The Darkness
(billy steinberg, tom kelly)
I thought I was happy
Yeah, at least I went through the motions
I was always laughin
What was left of my emotions
And my whole life was compromised
And my smile undisguised
Then I met you and I let you
Oh, I let you touch me
In the darkness
You make me see how lucky it feels
In the darkness
I thought Id go crazy
Yeah, I couldnt sleep through the nighttime
I would toss and turn...
In between the sheets and my mind
Oh I sleep like a baby now
With you here, youre my baby now
Every night I want surprises
When you touch me (touch me)
In the darkness
Chorus
And when Id had nothin to hold
You showed me the handle
Oh, and when I was
So cold, you were a vigilant candle
In the darkness, in the darkness
In the darkness, in the, in the
Darkness
Chorus
song performed by by Taylor Dayne
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Edge Of Day
Sitting near the edge of day
when the night creatures go to sleep
and just before the day creatures awake.
When the clouds of darkness dissipate
leaving the sky a pale blue,
so the sun can peer through.
That edge of silence
when no sound stirs.
That few minutes when the world
is at peace with itself.
I sit there and ponder
all the wonders of the world,
the beauty that catches you by surprise
when you first see it with wide-open eyes.
The strugglers in foreign parts
to see each new day through.
The deserts and the mountains
that stretch out across so many lands.
The delicate landscapes that all of us can see.
Those precious dreams that dwell
deep inside you and me.
All this and more I see
as I sit near the edge of day
as the night silently fades away.
25 July 2001
poem by David Harris
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Dark Light Dark
Living nightmare awake
Solitude unyielding
Forsaken forgotten
Cannot sleep
Cannot dream
Reprieve darkness
Praying sleep
Praying dream
Awake prisoned darkness
Time passes never light
Darkness consuming
Broken lost
Waiting sleep
Waiting dream
Light draws near
Light appears
Shineth deliverance
Warm glimmer hope
Darkness retreats
Happiness surfaces
Thorns gone
Pain fades
Shelter amidst light
Dream envelopes cherish
Dream breaks shattered
Awaken again darkness
Scream pain again
Darkness spinning ruling
Light blackened
poem by GMS Pinafore
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Sunlight and Darkness
Lifeless world that isn’t dead
A beauty that is left unseen
From the darkness will this world be led?
Night and day, this worlds between
The question stands: Is it dusk or dawn?
Into darkness are we led or have we fled
Do we end or are we born?
Do we rise or fall to this lullaby bed
Woken birds sing sweet praise
Night’s shrouded eye has closed
The sun, its head will raise
What darkness hid is exposed
A glorious world, a new home
With trees and bees and calmed seas
That all sway to the risen suns tone
See how the sun changes life with such ease
Love blooms as flowers open there eyes
Another day one so full of hope
But what will happen when this sun dies
Who will throw us the saving rope?
Sunlight lost as the sun dies
Run hide by the darkness we must abide
And no-one can hear the suns weak cries
Now is when the world plunges to the dark side
poem by Rebecca Pepper
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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In The Darkness
Why am I here now
What have I done
Running on empty - I got nowhere to run
Cant get an answer
Cant get it right
Just try to make it
till the end of the night
Is there a way to avoid doing wrong
Lead me away from the darkness
Light up my day show me where I belong
Please dont leave me all alone in the darkness
Far in the distance
There is night, there is day
Sounds are waving nets of dismay
Sometimes Im stuck in a shocking delay
Like in a slow motion movie
Im reaching out for something to hold
Life slips away in the cold - in the cold
My heart is so cold - my heart is so cold
Why was I turned down
Whats going on
I wish there was something that could have been done
How can I get there
Where is the light
How can I make it
till the end of the night
How can I turn darkness to light
Leaving my fear in the darkness
Is there a way how can I overcome
My restless nights and my fear - and my fear
In the darkness - in the darkness - in the darkness
song performed by by U. D. O.
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Cliff House
When the sun has set in the wintertime
And I'm all alone in this grey old house,
I bolt the shutters and pull the blinds
And set a spark to the candlewax;
The wind runs howling about the eaves,
The shutters chatter, the wind-cock spins,
The breakers clatter and clash below
As my world returns to me, widdershins.
It's then that I hear my mother's voice
So faint at first in the storm outside,
She sighs and moans, and I hear her plead
The length and breadth of the countryside.
Her voice soughs out from the aspens near,
Quivers in ferns and rocks, as if
No year that followed has spent her need
For still she sobs at the edge of the cliff.
Her voice comes whispering under the door
I plug my ears and I cry out loud:
'Leave me, mother, you worked your will,
You earned your fee of a graveyard shroud! '
Still she mutters and moans for him
The shape that darkened our outer door,
Whenever my father was not around
I'd hear his steps on the oaken floor.
Then I'd be sent to my lonely room
And told to play as she locked me in,
Her eyes were bright and her tone was gay
As she breathless, left for her wayward sin.
I heard them laugh in the room above,
The steady beat as they rocked the bed,
And then he'd bellow, and she would scream
As I pulled the covers right over my head.
On winter nights she would pace the floor,
Impatient then, and she'd peer outside,
Men with torches were on the beach
And I'd hear them curse at the rising tide.
But then I'd peek through my window shades
To see them marching up over the hill,
Carrying barrels and flagons of wine
To the village, seen from my window-sill.
She caught me once and she screamed in fright,
'You never, never must look, you see!
Those men are phantoms, they're only ghosts
From wrecks aground on the outer key.'
Then later came the knock at the door,
I saw the shadow, the wide brimmed hat,
And as she turned the key in the lock,
I heard her whisper, and sigh: 'Oh Jack! '
I asked her once who the stranger was
Who came so late, it was awful queer,
'It's always dark when he comes to call,
He never comes when my father's here.'
My mother grimaced, and turned quite pale
Then said, 'he brings us our victuals, son,
Tea and coffee, sugar and salt,
And a bushel of wheat and barleycorn.'
One day, a team of Revenue Men
Were waiting there in the cove below,
A gale was blowing, the breakers crashed,
I woke when the early rooster crowed.
Then lights and men in a mad melee
And a gun went off and a scream of pain,
I watched as they marched them over the hill,
A line of phantoms encased in chain.
My mother ran from the open door,
Out to the windswept cliff she fled,
I heard her moan as she looked on down
At the figure that lay on the beach, stone dead.
My father followed her, looking grim
As he stood behind in the driving rain,
But mother fell to her knees, and wailed
Like a banshee whirled in a pit of pain.
I left the window, I crossed the room,
I took the stairs at a run that day,
The door lay open to morning gloom
I raced on out in the pouring rain.
But over toward the edge of the cliff
I could see my father, looking down,
Mother lay on the beach below, while
All my father could do was frown.
I'll never know if she jumped that day
To join the shape that lay dead on the beach,
Or whether my father pushed her there,
A love long dead, that was out of reach.
He cried no tears, that I recall
When they buried them both in a hillside grave,
But followed them after a year and a day,
Slashed his throat in the old church nave.
Years have gone, and I prowl the house,
Perched on the edge of this dreadful cliff,
I dare not leave, for my mother's cries
Blow in and out from the storm swept reef.
But late on wintry nights the sound
Of those heavy steps on the oaken floor,
A shadow passes my room at night
And my mother sighs, and I hear no more.
poem by David Lewis Paget
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The House Of Dust: Part 03: 13: The half-shut doors through which we heard that music
The half-shut doors through which we heard that music
Are softly closed. Horns mutter down to silence.
The stars whirl out, the night grows deep.
Darkness settles upon us. A vague refrain
Drowsily teases at the drowsy brain.
In numberless rooms we stretch ourselves and sleep.
Where have we been? What savage chaos of music
Whirls in our dreams?—We suddenly rise in darkness,
Open our eyes, cry out, and sleep once more.
We dream we are numberless sea-waves languidly foaming
A warm white moonlit shore;
Or clouds blown windily over a sky at midnight,
Or chords of music scattered in hurrying darkness,
Or a singing sound of rain . . .
We open our eyes and stare at the coiling darkness,
And enter our dreams again.
poem by Conrad Potter Aiken
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Multitudes Turn In Darkness
The half-shut doors through which we heard that music
Are softly closed. Horns mutter down to silence,
The stars wheel out, the night grows deep.
Darkness settles upon us; a Vague refrain
Drowsily teases at the drowsy brain.
In numberless rooms we stretch ourselves and sleep.
Where have we been ? What savage chaos of music
Whirls in our dreams? We suddenly rise in darkness,
Open our eyes, cry out, and sleep once more.
We dream we are numberless sea-waves, languidly foaming
A warm white moonlit shore;
Or clouds blown windily over a sky at midnight,
Or chords of music scattered in hurrying darkness,
Or a singing sound of rain
We open our eyes and stare at the coiling darkness,
And enter our dreams again.
poem by Conrad Potter Aiken
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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How Do You Sleep At Night
(jim mcbride/jerry salley)
I havent had a good nights sleep
In weeks now thanks to you
The ghost of broken promises you made
Haunts every room
A hurtin heart cant get no rest round here
I lie awake and wonder how
Your conscience could be clear
How do you sleep at night
Do you toss and turn till the morning light
Does the darkness help
When you lie down with the truth?
How do you sleep at night?
Are you all alone or do you hold someone tight
Do you see me
When you close your eyes?
How do you sleep at night?
Now your side of the beds as cold
As the lies that I believed
Im at the point when I cant even
Trust you in my dreams
Did the way you left me leave you feelin proud?
Or does the loneliness come callin
When the sun goes down?
How do you sleep at night
Do you toss and turn till the morning light
Does the darkness help
When you lie down with the truth
How do you sleep at night
Are you all alone or do you hold someone tight
Do you see me
When you close your eyes
How do you sleep at night
song performed by by Wade Hayes
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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How Do You Sleep At Night
(jim mcbride/jerry salley)
I havent had a good nights sleep
In weeks now thanks to you
The ghost of broken promises you made
Haunts every room
A hurtin heart cant get no rest round here
I lie awake and wonder how
Your conscience could be clear
How do you sleep at night
Do you toss and turn till the morning light
Does the darkness help
When you lie down with the truth?
How do you sleep at night?
Are you all alone or do you hold someone tight
Do you see me
When you close your eyes?
How do you sleep at night?
Now your side of the beds as cold
As the lies that I believed
Im at the point when I cant even
Trust you in my dreams
Did the way you left me leave you feelin proud?
Or does the loneliness come callin
When the sun goes down?
How do you sleep at night
Do you toss and turn till the morning light
Does the darkness help
When you lie down with the truth
How do you sleep at night
Are you all alone or do you hold someone tight
Do you see me
When you close your eyes
How do you sleep at night
song performed by by Wade Hayes
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Omegaman
The night came down, jungle sounds were in my ears
City screams are all Ive heard in twenty years
The razors edge of night, it cuts into my sleep
I sit upon the edge now
Shall I make that leap?
Im the omegaman
Im the omegaman
The skys alive with turned on television sets
I walk the streets and seek another vision yet
The echo makes me turn to see that last frontier
The edge of time closes down as I disappear
Im the omegaman
Im the omegaman
Im the omegaman
Im the omegaman
Always talking to myself
Oh!
The time thats best is when surroundings fade away
The presense of another world comes close to me
Its time for me to throw away this paper knife
Im not alone in reaching for a perfect life
Im the omegaman
Im the omegaman
Im the omegaman
Im the omegaman
Im so tired
Of the omegaman
song performed by by Police
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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