I Know of a Rose (2011)

I know of a rose that shall not die,
Which blooms forever in my heart,
The passion of my inner eye.

What roots in earth cannot deny
That what must come must too depart,
Yet there is a rose that shall not die.

She blooms for all beneath the sky
With joy and spirit – the greatest part
And passion of my inner eye.

And even as the sea must sigh
For waters carried far apart
I think of the rose that shall not die:

For waters return to the sea’s deep cry
By rivers that wend and whirl and dart.
For the passion of my inner eye

There will not be that last goodbye,
For she is me and I am part
Of her, my love and inner eye,
The rose I love that shall not die.

Like You (2011)

The light of love and joy is in his eyes,
Though strenuous the effort of his days;
Like you, he wants to live before he dies.

Though born into a world of tears and cries,
Of hardships that dishearten and amaze,
The light of love and joy is in his eyes.

We suffer: that is something life implies –
There’s no escape, it falls so many ways.
Like you, he wants to live before he dies:

He wants the bliss and grief that life supplies,
The heartbreak and the rapture of love’s craze.
The light of love and joy is in his eyes,

While we, with perfect bodies, feel surprise
That broken things should also warrant praise.
Like you, he wants to live before he dies,

In spite of hardships most could scarce surmise,
So take the time to meet his even gaze.
The light of love and joy is in his eyes;
Like you, he wants to live before he dies.