Then And Now
THEN
He loved her, and through many years,
Had paid his fair devoted court,
Until she wearied, and with sneers
Turned all his ardent love to sport.
That night within his chamber lone,
He long sat writing by his bed
A note in which his heart made moan
For love; the morning found him dead.
NOW
Like him, a man of later day
Was jilted by the maid he sought,
And from her presence turned away,
Consumed by burning, bitter thought.
He sought his room to write--a curse
Like him before and die, I ween.
Ah no, he put his woes in verse,
And sold them to a magazine.
poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar
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Related quotes
Sonnet 30: When to the sessions of sweet silent thought
When to the sessions of sweet silent thought
I summon up remembrance of things past,
I sigh the lack of many a thing I sought,
And with old woes new wail my dear time's waste.
Then can I drown an eye, unused to flow,
For precious friends hid in death's dateless night,
And weep afresh love's long since cancelled woe,
And moan th' expense of many a vanished sight.
Then can I grieve at grievances foregone,
And heavily from woe to woe tell o'er
The sad account of fore-bemoanèd moan,
Which I new pay as if not paid before.
But if the while I think on thee, dear friend,
All losses are restored and sorrows end.
poem by William Shakespeare
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Sonnet-Life Is Meaningless Sans God
I sought to know Life's meaning for quite long
Through Science and turned Atheist all the more;
And throughtout life, I was proved very wrong;
Science could not open Life's most secret door.
I sought Life's meaning from Mother Nature,
Who unfolded great truths of beauty much;
I learnt from her and turned quickly mature;
She showed me God, His Love and soothing touch.
Thus, Life divorced from God was vain pursuit;
My Theism took me to stellar heights;
God's mystery was more than our Life's great Truth;
I felt like one amidst the flying kites.
My Life was empty till I found my God
And saw His Love that made me Man from clod.
poem by John Celes
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I Am Like One That For Long Days Had Sate
I AM like one that for long days had sate,
With seaward eyes set keen against the gale,
On some lone foreland, watching sail by sail,
The portbound ships for one ship that was late;
And sail by sail, his heart burned up with joy,
And cruelly was quenched, until at last
One ship, the looked-for pennant at its mast,
Bore gaily, and dropt safely past the buoy;
And lo! the loved one was not there - was dead.
Then would he watch no more; no more the sea
With myriad vessels, sail by sail, perplex
His eyes and mock his longing. Weary head,
Take now thy rest; eyes, close; for no more me
Shall hopes untried elate, or ruined vex.
For thus on love I waited; thus for love
Strained all my senses eagerly and long;
Thus for her coming ever trimmed my song;
Till in the far skies coloured as a dove,
A bird gold-coloured flickered far and fled
Over the pathless waterwaste for me;
And with spread hands I watched the bright bird flee
And waited, till before me she dropped dead.
O golden bird in these dove-coloured skies
How long I sought, how long with wearied eyes
I sought, O bird, the promise of thy flight!
And now the morn has dawned, the morn has died,
The day has come and gone; and once more night
About my lone life settles, wild and wide.
poem by Robert Louis Stevenson
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The Coquette
Alone she sat with her accusing heart,
That, like a restless comrade frightened sleep,
And every thought that found her, left a dart
That hurt her so, she could not even weep.
Her heart that once had been a cup well filled
With love's red wine, save for some drops of gall
She knew was empty; though it had not spilled
Its sweets for one, but wasted them on all.
She stood upon the grave of her dead truth,
And saw her soul's bright armor red with rust,
And knew that all the riches of her youth
Were Dead Sea apples, crumbling into dust.
Love that had turned to bitter, biting scorn,
Hearthstones despoiled, and homes made desolate,
Made her cry out that she was ever born,
To loathe her beauty and to curse her fate
poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
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Never The God...
Your eyes bright, eager and trusting,
Where do we go from here, my son,
I spent my essence, loving and lusting,
Chasing a paper god, my son.
I turned my sword to a feathered quill,
Ensnared your mother’s heart, my son,
She loved the god in the paper spill
But never the god in your father, son.
We came together when life was full
And loved at the morning light, my son,
‘Til she grew heavy and I grew dull
While you just quickened and grew, my son.
Then you burst out like a single star
That beamed from our both horizons, son
We loved you more than the what-we-were
Than ever we loved each other, son.
So she grew bitter and sharp of tongue
And I went back to the pen, my son,
But all the words that I’d ever sung
Unravelled in desolation, son.
And when she left, she took you too,
The light in my life went out, my son,
I would she’d loved me as I loved you
But love is a laceration, son.
Now you have grown, the world’s ahead,
Your eyes are eager and bright, my son;
Don’t spend your essence on paper gods
Or trust in a woman’s love, my son.
For dreams and all ambitions fade
When a woman leaves in a storm, my son,
Remember the price that your father paid;
Love sought and lost in a rhyme, my son.
13 September 1991
poem by David Lewis Paget
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Sonnet: I Want To Be My Good Self, God
I fight a battle lone against great foes;
Some known and seen; others unknown, unseen;
They are the prime cause of my umptine woes;
If God wills only, improve will this scene.
Sometimes, I feel, I should have given up,
Long, long ago and turned to selfish ways;
But what to do, I've drunk the bitter cup;
So oft; I'm waiting for my better days.
Half of my life is almost gone by now;
What has the other half in store for me?
Let suff'rings come, I've learnt to them too love;
My heart and soul yearn for Eternity.
Let success come or failures strike me dead;
I will remain myself with my God-head.
poem by John Celes
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Gods of the East
Because I sought it far from men,
In deserts and alone,
I found it burning overhead,
The jewel of a Throne.
Because I sought--I sought it so
And spent my days to find--
It blazed one moment ere it left
The blacker night behind.
We be the Gods of the East--
Older than all--
Masters of Mourning and Feast--
How shall we fall?
* * * * *
This I saw when the rites were done,
And the lamps were dead and the Gods alone,
And the grey snake coiled on the altar stone--
Ere I fled from a Fear that I could not see,
And the Gods of the East made mouths at me.
poem by Rudyard Kipling
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Sweet Sorrows***************1978
we met many years ago
in a time which we forgot.
i had really loved you
but you had loved me not.
you had taken me for granted
and turned my love aside.
you said you could'nt love me
and turned and said goodbye.
the years have come and gone
since that heartbreak night.
now we meet again in a
swinging dicoteque with lights.
you see me doing the hustle
with all the girls in sight.
my back is turned towards you
as you walk out to the floor.
you walk right up to me
as i had done before.
the thoughts flash through your mind
as i laugh and say 'goodbye'.
poem by Louis Rams
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Stopped By A Bullet Of Love
Love and the stranger
So very far from home
A kid was playing little wing
I sat drinking on my own
Love and danger
Oh, they walk hand in hand
Said she was an actress
Thought I was in a band
Stopped by a bullet
Shes a pinball rolling round my head
She turned on a dime
Left me for dead
I found love for the very first time
Hey arizona, I can feel your heat
And I never, loved a tattoo
The way that I love you
Hey arizona, in the coolest, desert wind
Willies singing whiskey river
I let love walk in
*
Stopped by a bullet
Shes a pinball rolling round my head
She turned on a dime
Left me for dead
I found love for the very first time
Loved for the very first time
I found love for the very first time
Love for the very first time
Hey little joe
Is that your working name
Are you hiding something
Or is the truth a darker stain
Hey little joe
Im not another fan
The chorus lines a pickup
And Im a one night stand
Repeat *
song performed by by Ufo
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Maid Of Ocram, Or, Lord Gregory
Gay was the Maid of Ocram
As lady eer might be
Ere she did venture past a maid
To love Lord Gregory.
Fair was the Maid of Ocram
And shining like the sun
Ere her bower key was turned on two
Where bride bed lay for none.
And late at night she sought her love--
The snow slept on her skin--
Get up, she cried, thou false young man,
And let thy true love in.
And fain would he have loosed the key
All for his true love's sake,
But Lord Gregory then was fast asleep,
His mother wide awake.
And up she threw the window sash,
And out her head put she:
And who is that which knocks so late
And taunts so loud to me?
It is the Maid of Ocram,
Your own heart's next akin;
For so you've sworn, Lord Gregory,
To come and let me in.
O pause not thus, you know me well,
Haste down my way to win.
The wind disturbs my yellow locks,
The snow sleeps on my skin.--
If you be the Maid of Ocram,
As much I doubt you be,
Then tell me of three tokens
That passed with you and me.--
O talk not now of tokens
Which you do wish to break;
Chilled are those lips you've kissed so warm,
And all too numbed to speak.
You know when in my father's bower
You left your cloak for mine,
Though yours was nought but silver twist
And mine the golden twine.--
If you're the lass of Ocram,
As I take you not to be,
The second token you must tell
Which past with you and me.--
O know you not, O know you not
Twas in my father's park,
You led me out a mile too far
And courted in the dark?
When you did change your ring for mine
My yielding heart to win,
Though mine was of the beaten gold
Yours but of burnished tin,
Though mine was all true love without,
Yours but false love within?
O ask me no more tokens
For fast the snow doth fall.
Tis sad to strive and speak in vain,
You mean to break them all.--
If you are the Maid of Ocram,
As I take you not to be,
You must mention the third token
That passed with you and me.--
Twas when you stole my maidenhead;
That grieves me worst of all.--
Begone, you lying creature, then
This instant from my hall,
Or you and your vile baby
Shall in the deep sea fall;
For I have none on earth as yet
That may me father call.--
O must none close my dying feet,
And must none close my hands,
And may none bind my yellow locks
As death for all demands?
You need not use no force at all,
Your hard heart breaks the vow;
You've had your wish against my will
And you shall have it now.
And must none close my dying feet,
And must none close my hands,
And will none do the last kind deeds
That death for all demands?--
Your sister, she may close your feet,
Your brother close your hands,
Your mother, she may wrap your waist
In death's fit wedding bands;
Your father, he may tie your locks
And lay you in the sands.--
My sister, she will weep in vain,
My brother ride and run,
My mother, she will break her heart;
And ere the rising sun
My father will be looking out--
But find me they will none.
I go to lay my woes to rest,
None shall know where I'm gone.
God must be friend and father both,
Lord Gregory will be none.--
Lord Gregory started up from sleep
And thought he heard a voice
That screamed full dreadful in his ear,
And once and twice and thrice.
Lord Gregory to his mother called:
O mother dear, said he,
I've dreamt the Maid of Ocram
Was floating on the sea.
Lie still, my son, the mother said,
Tis but a little space
And half an hour has scarcely passed
Since she did pass this place.--
O cruel, cruel mother,
When she did pass so nigh
How could you let me sleep so sound
Or let her wander bye?
Now if she's lost my heart must break--
I'll seek her till I die.
He sought her east, he sought her west,
He sought through park and plain;
He sought her where she might have been
But found her not again.
I cannot curse thee, mother,
Though thine's the blame, said he
I cannot curse thee, mother,
Though thou'st done worse to me.
Yet do I curse thy pride that aye
So tauntingly aspires;
For my love was a gay knight's heir,
And my father was a squire's.
And I will sell my park and hall;
And if ye wed again
Ye shall not wed for titles twice
That made ye once so vain.
So if ye will wed, wed for love,
As I was fain to do;
Ye've gave to me a broken heart,
And I'll give nought to you.
Your pride has wronged your own heart's blood;
For she was mine by grace,
And now my lady love is gone
None else shall take her place.
I'll sell my park and sell my hall
And sink my titles too.
Your pride's done wrong enough as now
To leave it more to do.
She owneth none that owned them all
And would have graced them well;
None else shall take the right she missed
Nor in my bosom dwell.--
And then he took and burnt his will
Before his mother's face,
And tore his patents all in two,
While tears fell down apace--
But in his mother's haughty look
Ye nought but frowns might trace.
And then he sat him down to grieve,
But could not sit for pain.
And then he laid him on the bed
And ne'er got up again.
poem by John Clare
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What A Heartache
I thought I saw the promise of forever in your eyes
I thought that I was sure of what I saw
You led me to believe that I was special in your life
So I left my heart wide open for the fall
What a heartache you turned out to be
Chorus:
What a heartache, what a heartache
Love aint always what it appears to be
What a heartache you turned out to be
I thought Id found a safe and lovin place inside your heart
And I was warm and willing anytime
The same soft lips that kissed me sweet
Were lyin from the start
But I swear I thought your love was genuine
What a heartache you turned out to be
Chorus:
What a heartache, what a heartache
Like a switchblade that cuts quick and deep
Ooo, what a heartache you turned out to be
Bridge:
It just goes to show that you never can tell
I really thought that I knew you well
I still cant believe I could be deceived so easily
Are all these wishes Im wishin to myself
Like rusty coins in a wishin well
Wishes come true, they come false as well
Its too late for you and me
Oh, what a heartache, ooo, what a heart break
Love is two-faced and easy to believe
Chorus:
What a heartache, ooo, what a heartache
What a mistake to think I could believe
Ooo, what a heartache you turned out to be
Oh, what a heartache you turned out to be
song performed by by Dolly Parton
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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You turned from me
Remember me as I was back then
As a precious memory of comfort in time of agony and pain
You have turned from me; but I always see
The beautiful maid laughing by a flowering spring tree
With the slaying eyes that made the air around so bright
Under shaking, flickering stars of warm hazy summer night
Hands were touching hands
Love grew slowly in such timid shy trend
You have turned from me; but I always remember
The bursting laugh against the night dew of early November
That one careless night of youth and laugh
While outside the spangled reeds in the silver moon did bath
For me, that night is the only night I have
Such a precious jewel against hard times in my heart I save
And how about you? in shine or in sorrow
How far did that splendid night in your heart grow?
You have turned from me time passes for long
The years were harsh leaving me forlorn without a song
I dare you never will see
What time and years have done to me
Copy rights 2010
All Rights reserved
The Difference
When we were together, heart of my heart, on that unforgotten quest,
With your tender arm about me thrown and your head upon my breast,
There came a grief that was bitter and deep and straitly dwell with me,
And I shunned it not, so sweet it was to suffer and be with thee.
And now when no more against mine own is beating thine eager heart,
When thine eyes are turned from the glance of mine and our ways are far apart,
A dear and long-sought joy has come my constant guest to be,
And I love it not, so bitter it is, unfelt, unshared, by thee.
poem by Lucy Maud Montgomery
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Long Ago
I loved a maiden, long ago,
She held within her hand my fate;
And in the ruddy sunset glow
We lingered at the garden gate.
The splendor of the western skies
Lay in a halo on her hair.
I gazed with worship in her eyes,
And deemed her true and knew her fair.
'Good night,' I said, and turned away;
She held me with her subtle smile.
I saw her red lips whisper 'stay,'
And so I lingered yet awhile.
'I love you, love you, sweet!' I said,
She laughed, and whispered, 'I love you.'
I kissed her small mouth, ripe and red,
And knew her fair, and deemed her true.
'Twas very, very long ago,
And I was young, and so was she;
My faith as love was strong, for oh!
The maid was all the world to me.
But as the sunset died away
And left the heavens cold and blue,
So died my dream of love one day.
The maid was only fair,
not
true.
poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
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Love And Be Loved
The Princess was given a gift;
she would love and be loved
her whole life long, when the
evil fairy came with her curse
to the christening, saying the
Princess would be turned out
of her kingdom; she could not
take away the gift of love
Though the curse was fulfilled,
the Princess lost her kingdom,
love went with her in the form
of a Prince turned into a Hedge-
hog who loved the Princess
more than life; the Princess
grew to love the Hedgehog
also and her kiss revealed
Her love to him, turned him back
into a Prince; all the evil fairy had
done was to make sure that the
Princess had an adventurous life,
married her true love who had laid
down his life to save hers when he
became a Hedgehog to serve…
E Nesbit - The Princess and the Hedgehog -
Abelard-Schumann 1974
poem by Margaret Alice
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Flora of the Eden: Antwerp
Eyes that sought my eyes, an-hungered, as a fire;
Hands that sought and caught my hands in their desire;
Hands and eyes that clipt and lipt me as a hungering fire!
But I turned away from your ecstatic eyes,
But my heart was silent to your eager sighs,
But I turned to other eyes from your imploring eyes.
Hands that I rejected, you were fain to give;
Eyes that for their moment loved me, as I live;
Mouth that kissed me: Flora of the Eden, O forgive!
poem by Arthur Symons
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Uhland's
There were three cavaliers that went over the Rhine,
And gayly they called to the hostess for wine.
"And where is thy daughter? We would she were here,--
Go fetch us that maiden to gladden our cheer!"
"I'll fetch thee thy goblets full foaming," she said,
"But in yon darkened chamber the maiden lies dead."
And lo! as they stood in the doorway, the white
Of a shroud and a dead shrunken face met their sight.
Then the first cavalier breathed a pitiful sigh,
And the throb of his heart seemed to melt in his eye,
And he cried, "Hadst thou lived, O my pretty white rose,
I ween I had loved thee and wed thee--who knows?"
The next cavalier drew aside a small space,
And stood to the wall with his hands to his face;
And this was the heart-cry that came with his tears:
"I loved her, I loved her these many long years!"
But the third cavalier kneeled him down in that place,
And, as it were holy, he kissed that dead face:
"I loved thee long years, and I love thee to-day,
And I'll love thee, dear maiden, forever and aye!"
poem by Eugene Field
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Sorrowful Love
A boy and a girl,
the best of friends.
From elementary to high school,
from beginning to end.
Through all those years,
their friendship grew.
They both felt the same,
but neither knew.
Each waking moment,
since the day they met,
They both loved each other,
sunrise to sunset.
He was all she had,
in her terrible life.
He was the one,
who kept her from her knife.
She was his angel,
she made him smile.
Though life threw him curves,
she made it all worth while.
Then one day,
things went terribly wrong.
The next few weeks
were like a very sad song.
He made her jealous,
on purpose he tried.
When the girl asked, 'Do you love her? '
on purpose he lied.
He played with jealousy,
like it was a game.
Little did he know,
things would never be the same.
His plan was working,
but he had no clue.
How wrong things would go,
the damage he would do.
One night she broke down,
feeling very alone.
Just her and the blade,
no one else home.
She dialled his number,
he answered, 'Hello'
She told him she loved him,
and hung up the phone.
He raced to her house,
just a minute too late.
Found her lying in blood,
her heart had no rate.
Beside her was a note,
in it her confession.
Her love for this boy,
her only obsession.
As he read the note,
he knelt down and cried.
He grabbed her knife,
that night they both died.
She was found in his arms,
both of them dead.
Under her note
his handwriting said:
I loved her so,
she never knew.
All this time
I loved her too
poem by Tiana Webb
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Thats The Way Love Turned Out To Be
(quinton claunch, dave hall & ry cooder)
Brand new day, brave new man
Its a miracle what love can do
All the joys romance can bring
Come smiling down on a heart thats true
When love is real, you cant turn it around
Its like a river running down to the sea
This old world turns around for lovers like you
Its not the way love turned out for me
People in love build a house they can share
Takes a long time to get it just right
But a fire can start in the kitchen somewhere
And burn that little house down over night
That flame burning bright in your heart, I believed that
You turned it on just for me
Another man held that fire, burned our house to the ground
Thats the way love turned out for me
People turn out for the big show
Pretty flowers turn out in the spring
And the light turns out in the kitchen
When somebody pulls on the string
But theres no light burning in my kitchen
And no doors open up with my key
And I aint got no one to turn to
Thats the way love turned out for me
song performed by by Ry Cooder
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Maid's Lament
I loved him not; and yet, now he is gone,
I feel I am alone.
I check'd him while he spoke; yet, could he speak,
Alas! I would not check.
For reasons not to love him once I sought,
And wearied all my thought
To vex myself and him: I now would give
My love could he but live
Who lately lived for me, and, when he found
'Twas vain, in holy ground
He hid his face amid the shades of death!
I waste for him my breath
Who wasted his for me! but mine returns,
And this torn bosom burns
With stifling heat, heaving it up in sleep,
And waking me to weep
Tears that had melted his soft heart: for years
Wept he as bitter tears!
Merciful God! such was his latest prayer,
These may she never share.
Quieter is his breath, his breast more cold,
Than daisies in the mould,
Where children spell, athwart the churchyard gate,
His name and life's brief date.
Pray for him, gentle souls, whoe'er you be,
And oh! pray too for me!
poem by Walter Savage Landor
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