Love is a Beautiful Thing




Looking back in a haze of nostalgia,
I suspect that love
is an extraordinary happening
clothed in the every day,
a wily thing that springs its tricks
and slaps its knee
in delight at coupled pratfalls.

I'd love to greet it,
"Ciao bella!"
the moment it turns the corner,
sticks out its foot
and trips me up,
making me exclaim with surprise
over the skinning of my knee,
the one that's puffed and swollen,
and the capture of my heart,
the heart so deeply buried that
I didn't know it could be found.

I'd love to serenade love
with a song
whose lyrics hum a pure note of truth
as Rumi did when he gathered
opposites in his hands and noted
he became fierce like a lion
and tender like the evening star
when love dribbled warm and moist
in the tender little cracks of his soul.
I know he was talking about God,
but love in its varied forms
is my god.

I'd sure as hell prefer to quote Rumi and say,
"I was dead, then alive.
Weeping, then laughing,"
rather than recall that once
I was alive and laughing,
until
in the blink of an eye,
the beat of a heart,
the assassin struck and I wept
as love lay bleeding.

Run -- quickly -- and find a love doctor
with a penchant for passion.
Bring her hither and command
that she, like the most gentle mother,
bind up love's oozing wounds
and bring it back to tender life.

I am yours and you are mine,
oh you who thinks my every thought
and brings bouquets of prayer
of wings of breath.

La dolce vita.
So unexpected on this close side of death.
Ciao bella.


Comments

I have never heard it put it quite this way. This is fun and uplifting, even with the remembrance of the assasin taking love's life.

My favorite lines, "a wily thing that springs its tricks and slaps its knee..."
Reya Mellicker said…
He was talking about God, though, completely accessible and yet unreachable always.

His poetry is exquisite. In my own life at the moment I'm looking for something slightly less divine, more earth based, oh yeah.
Meri said…
Lakeviewer: I'm glad you enjoyed its mainly playful, optimistic thrust.

Reya:
Yes, Rumi was talking about God, mystic that he was. Most of us earthbound types never reach that level of fervor for the Divine. We instead open ourselves to a more human kind of emotional ecstasy -- the coupling with a soul mate or shaman lover.

Those earthly Shaman Lovers teach about one variety of love from which we derive a glimmer of understanding about the all-encompassing energy of divine love. They show us the ecstasy of the Divine through the limited perspective of mere mortals. They also lead us to the heights and depths, where we discover --- in the best of cases, when we survive the dashing on the rocks in the depths --- our own divine natures. I think that whether we know it or not, we all seek the love of special men or women whose divinity is luminous though they are earthy and joyfully embodied. We are attracted to their light because it reminds us of our own. And from there,ideally we grow in our own luminous divinity through confronting our light and shadow in the context of relationship if we have the intent to honor its sacred nature. Unfortunately, too few have the consciousness or intent to even contemplate reaching for the ideal. So when the light flickers or fades, so does the commitment.
beth said…
you have such a way with words and thoughts and they just keep better and better !
Delwyn said…
Hi Meri

thank you for the words

yours
and Rumi's

keep your eyes open
but don't look too hard
you want to be tripped up...

Happy days
poefusion said…
love is certainly a beautiful thing but can trip one up in a heartbeat when least expected. keep your eyes peeled. have a great night.
hi Meri! Great poem! Poignant, humorous,a dash of bitters--protect your heart! LOVE xxox
PixieDust said…
Love personified - yay!

:-D

(((hugs))),
me
José Ramón said…
You have a very interesting blog. Thanks for visiting Creativity and imagination photos of Jose Ramon

Regards

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