La Nuit Etoilee, Van Gogh

The Poetry

Works by Favorite Poets

I Should Have Been Born
(Inspired by the music of Van Morrison)

 I should have been born a wild stallion
Or the wind that blows through the trees
A bottomless well with secrets to tell
And the spirit to do as I please

I should have been born a bright star
Far from the blazing noon
With a blue velvet sky to hold me up high
While I dance by the light of the moon

I should have been born a great river
That runs, becomes one with the sea
High I would ride on the changing tide
And laugh with the whale on my knee

I should have been born an oak tree
Or the stone that builds castle and lair
A poet of rhyme to while away time
In an eternity righteous and fair

I should have been born a rainbow
Or the fairy of legend and grace
An immortal knight with a noble plight
Mermaid with an angel's face

Alas, I was born a mere woman
With so little time to embrace
The beauty and riches around me
Before touching the Master's face.

No One Greater 

From the knight to the philosopher,
From sea to shining sea,
There’s no one greater than myself
In the midst of calamity.

When times are at their hardest
That is when I meet the best
Of the person living deep inside;
Endurance the hardest test.

And when I think I can’t go on,
I find indeed I do;
There is no limit to my strength
When I think there’s no way through.

When loneliness overwhelms me,
When the wolves are at my door,
There is nothing I cannot overcome,
Nothing and so much more.

So when I’m feeling lonely,
When I think I’ve lost my way,
I remember I’m still here and strong,
Growing greater every day.

This Heart of Mine

 Lovers come and lovers go;
Some gone quickly, others slow,
And still I wonder who will know
This heart of mine.

Lovers give and lovers take;
Lovers lie and hearts do break;
Will yet another try to rape
This heart of mine?

  Lovers touch and lovers speak;
Some are faithful, others cheat;
Will any lover ever keep
This heart of mine?

Lovers hurt and lovers leave;
Lovers die and others grieve,
Yet somehow my mind still believes
This heart of mine.

Lovers laugh and lovers cry;
Lovers whisper, lovers sigh;
Oh, give it wings and make it fly—
This heart of mine.

New Orleans

 In quiet moments when the sky darkens
And rain trickles like teardrops from the clouds,
I remember the emotions of another place,
Another time not so long ago
When you were by my side;
Happy voices—the trill of laughter;
Sadness—the voice of tears;
Joyful hellos followed by good-byes that came too quickly;
Time passed like water through a sieve
In that city I love so much.

And so I returned to this other place,
A place of loneliness,
And to the sorrow of a life that has never
Allowed the sun to pass through its blinds of despair,
To a bed filled with dreams that mingle with nightmares,
To the hope of something more to come
Entwined with the fear of an evermore of nothingness.

Lovers pass by in the rain, laughing and unaware,
Tangled in private ecstasy;
Their black umbrellas open to envelop the night and their intimacy,
Blotting out the pain of remembrance
And bringing me back to the business of living without you;
With aching heart, I push hard at the memory of you,
Fighting the desire, the longing for something I can never possess—
But everything that is you pushes back,
Forcing me to hold you tenderly
To the very heart that threatens to break.

Magnolias, jazz, and fiery founts,
Hurricanes and French Quarter parades,
A city of tombs on a cloudy afternoon at the brink of Spring;
Surrounded by the dead and wanting so much to finally live,
To come alive and love on Rue Bourbon at midnight
And laugh like Eve with her lover
In the sunshine of a Garden District restaurant,
While branches of pecan trees waltz boldly overhead;
All romantic notions that quickly give way
To the reality of fragile, awkward moments never to be recaptured;
Moments filled with harsh words never to be unspoken
And spilled tears begging for love without reproach.

Our lips never touched in those early morning hours,
Nor did the gentle candlelight ever warm our bodies as one—
Yet the passion that trembles inside,
The unrequited love still harbored painfully and quietly within
Is as much a part of me as my memories of
Bourbon Street at midnight and fiery fountains,
French Quarter parades and magnolia trees,
Garden District restaurants and the somber dead,
And that great and wonderful river
Running through the midst of a city that never sleeps.

All my life I shall mourn missed opportunity,
Those fragile moments that passed me by like lovers in the rain;
Imagining always the many things we might have seen,
Might have felt,
Might have been together,
You and I,
In New Orleans.

 The Far Away Sea
(Written in Ireland 2001)

 I walked beside the far away sea
And thought of my fork in the road
One way might lead to happiness
The other right back to my load

I dreamed of those who love me
As I floated away on the breeze
And the far away sea washed up on the shore
And brought my soul back to me

If my spirit belonged to no one else
With only myself to please
I’d turn and run into the tide
Become one with the far away sea

Half my life has been lived in hell
Is it wrong to want heaven now
How do you tell the ones you love
You’ve forsaken them all somehow

How do you take your fate in your hands
And turn it all to the wind
Wash yourself clean in the far away sea
And start all over again.

Hope

 When all else fails, there is always the hope
That I have not come to the end of my rope
That dreams still come true, and love grows wild
In the heart of a woman who loves like a child

When all else fails, I close my eyes
And dream of stars in moonlit skies
Of flying on the wind as free as the birds
Full of joy and love that defies all words

When all else fails, I know I'm still here
The sun will come up and melt my fear
And I will arise and begin anew
With a hope that shines fresh with the morning dew

When all else fails, I know I will find
The dreams that I seek at the end of the line
Just a little farther now to travel
Before the mystery begins to unravel

And travel on, indeed, I do
For there's no turning back when your heart is true
And intent on finding the rainbow's end
Where butterflies frolic and love is a friend.

And Love Begins

 Two love-struck hearts an ocean apart
Waiting for their ships to embark
And bring them together once and for all
Satiate the hunger that has come to call
He haunts her thoughts late in the night
When she sits and ponders by the firelight 

He sees her eyes in his dreams at night
Hears her voice, feels her light
He reaches out to her, and she is gone
Like forgotten lyrics to a familiar song
He thinks of destiny, of joy, and fate
He hears her whisper on the wind of late

She feels a touch she has not yet known
But he has been with her all along
Deep in her heart, he drinks from her soul
They have not yet touched, but, oh, how they know
That this is something that has never been
A feeling that may never come again

He waits for her; she yearns for him
And then they touch, and love begins.

I Knew 

All the could and should have beens
That somehow passed me by;
All the sleepless nights filled with despair
And the many tears I cried...
They all mean nothing to me now,
Just steps along the way
On the road that finally led to you;
I knew you'd come someday.
I said a thousand prayers and asked
That God send love to me,
Someone who'd be my greatest friend
And give his heart to me,
 Someone to talk to late at night,
To hold and love and cherish,
Someone to swear undying love,
The kind that will not perish,
And then one day you found me
In the most unlikely way
And now I've let you in my heart
And there you'll always stay.

Shame

Love is not real and vows mean nothing;
Promises broken drown in rivers of tears;
Chop me down like a tree that’s been broken
In the daring winds of a thousand years.

And with me, I will take my shame;
Guard it well, for it is mine own;
If someone must account, I’ll take the blame
And carry the burden to my throne.

Say Nothing 

There’s so much I want to say to you
But instead I’ll laugh and smile
Hide the tears and all my fears
Say nothing for a while

The time will come when I can speak
The words I want to say
But until then, I’ll say nothing
As we carry on this way.

 

Coming Home

 I've been lost for so very long,
My life has been a sad, sad song,
And then I found a haven safe and warm
In your arms where the pain is gone,
I'm coming home.

I've wandered restless as the wind,
Spent half a lifetime giving in
To odds that never let me win
And now I'm ready to love again,
I'm coming home.

The tears I cry are for happiness,
The dreams I dream now full of bliss,
My hopes soar high above an abyss
That once was filled with emptiness,
I'm coming home.

Thank God for you, my love, my friend,
Thank you for all the love you send,
For the sweetness that you dare to lend
While I dream a new story with a happy end,
I'm coming home.

Forever

I have loved you forever
Throughout space and time
In our song, you are the melody
And I the eternal rhyme

I love you now as I have before
As I will again one day
You and I are so much more
Than the flavor of the day

We are forever and always
We are now and then
We are love and passion
A beginning that has no end

Yes, I have loved you forever
Before there was sun and storm
Your face was etched in my memory
At the moment my soul was born

And I have searched for you always
Pressing on even through the pain
How could I ever have let you go
After the wind whispered your name

No yesterday, no tomorrow
In a love that has no end
No goodbyes, no sorrow
No broken hearts to mend

For I have loved you forever
And forever I will, my friend
We are forever and always
Part of a love that cannot end.

Something More

When I wake up in the morning light
And the rain's beating down my door
The other side of the bed is empty
Leaving me longing for something more

When the noonday sun pushes clouds from the sky
And the world is a beautiful place to be
I close my eyes and see your face
Smiling back at me
And I move through each day with the knowing
That you'll be here with me in time
And I know that my love is showing
In the smile on this face of mine

When daylight fades with the evening sun
And shadows fall across my floor
I close my eyes and imagine you here
By my side forevermore
And I lie in bed imagining
The feel of your skin next to mine
The taste of your lips, the fire in your touch
That awakens this love inside

When I lie awake beneath the moon
And stare at the stars up high
I know that you're out there somewhere
Seeing the same night sky
And my eyes finally close and I dream of you
In my arms forevermore

 Then I wake up in the morning light
And the rain's beating down my door
And the other side of the bed is empty
Leaving me longing for something more.

This Woman Loves You

This woman loves you,
Though it sometimes seems untrue;
She's put her hopes and dreams in you,
And no one else will do;
She thinks of you and waits for you
And dreams of days to come
Filled with laughter and happiness,
Fed with warmth and love.

 This woman loves you,
Though others make you doubt;
It doesn't matter how you met,
She cannot live without
You in her heart and in her soul
Throughout eternity;
It was something she could not deny...
Perhaps her destiny.

This woman loves you,
And she will until the end;
She longs to rock you in her arms
And call you lover, friend;
She reaches out to touch you,
In the darkness, calls your name, 
As she hopes someday you stand up proud
Reaching out to her the same.

I'm Sorry

I'm sorry that I held you
And gave you all my love;
I'm sorry that I cherished 
All the love that never was;
I'm sorry that we never grasped
The dreams we hoped to find,
But most of all I'm sorry
That my heart has been so blind.

I'm sorry that you never meant
The words you said were true;
You never really felt it
When you told me "I love you;"
I'm sorry that I still respect
The things you say and do,
But most of all I'm sorry
That I'm still in love with you. 

Somewhere in the Night

 Somewhere in the night
I will find you in my dreams
And there we will be together
All that we can't in reality
And when we come together
Our bodies on fire like the sun
In your eyes I'll find the truth I know
That you are the very one
And in your arms I will feel
The love I have never known
And I will hold you tight to me
And never let you go
Whisper words of sweet love
For only your ears to hear
Touch your heart and fly you high
To a place you have never been
Tears of joy, soft, sweet laughter
I trace your smile and we live life
Happily ever after

Somewhere in the night
In my dreams….

From My Balcony
(Written in Ireland 2001)

From my balcony
I see chimney tops
Windows dark and light
Distant mountains in rain mist

Giggling girls stroll by
Shoppers carrying bags
Irish accents carried on the wind
To my third-floor world
To my balcony.

Fire and Water
(Written in Ireland 2001)

I am fire; you are water
The archer and the fish
Son of Neptune, Jupiter’s daughter
Love my only wish.

Earth and Sky

Somewhere between the earth and sky
You stole my heart away;
I didn’t even know it,
Simply found it gone one day.

Beneath the moon, beneath the stars,
Beneath the milky way,
I fell in love and found in you
A kindred soul; please stay.

The world is ruthless, heartless, cruel,
But in your arms was born
A place that’s safe, a harbor warm
To keep me from life’s storms.

And when I think of you, my heart,
My body, and my soul
All tremble with resounding joy;
Pray never let me go.

We've traveled far like pilgrims lost
To find one love to last,
And now we fear what lies ahead;
We must forget the past!

I found the courage deep inside
To let this love begin;
I hope you see it in my eyes,
How deep a love I’m in.

And if you ever doubt my heart,
Or think my motives wrong,
Just wrap your arms around me,
And feel the love so strong.

Beneath the moon, beneath the stars,
I’ll pledge my love to you;
Somewhere between the earth and sky,
I hope you’ll love me, too.

Starting Over Again

Weary and tired with a heart that's broken
Years of pain, love's only token
Pick yourself up and keep on hopin'
That's starting over again.

Sleeping alone through the darkest night
Then waking alone in the morning light
To find your way with no help in sight
That's starting over again.

Finding the strength to move ahead
Laughing aloud when you're full of dread
Living your life when you'd rather be dead
That's starting over again

One step forward and two steps back
Wondering if luck is something you lack
Crying the tears that you can't hold back
That's starting over again.

Teach Me This

 Teach me something I don’t know—
The place where flowers really go
When winter brings its deep, white snow—
Teach me this.

Whisper secrets I’ve not heard—
The night owl’s wisest, wittiest word,
The sanity in something that’s absurd—
Tell me this.

Show me something I can’t see—
The moon’s hiding place on the darkest eve,
A vision of all I can one day be—
Show me this.

 Touch me in places I’ve never felt—
Let me feel joy and love without guilt;
Give me your sunshine and make my heart melt—
Touch my soul.

You

 You are the light in my darkness
You are the sun in my day
You are the end of my rainbow
The path when I've lost my way

You are the stars in my night sky
You are my moon, big and bright
You're my reminder from heaven
That some things in my life are right

You are the star I once wished on
That fell from the heavens above
You are the dream that's been realized
The object of my greatest love

You are my sweetest endeavor
You are my grandest hope
You are the love I aspire to
The knot at the end of my rope

I've loved you for many a lifetime
But I couldn't see until now
The face that is yours in this world
The bittersweet pain on your brow

Oh, love me and stay with me always
Together we'll move through this life
Hand in hand by your side I will love you
We'll grow old by the warm firelight.

If

If my arms could reach across the sea
And hold you close to me,
You'd never need another soul
To keep you company.

If I could touch my lips to yours
And hold your hand in mine,
I promise you'd be loved so much
Until the end of time.

If I could see you smile again
And look into your eyes,
My heart would dance with joy
And delight in sweet surprise.

If you should give your heart to me,
I'll embrace it with my own,
Give you love you've never had
And make my heart your home.

This Poem

I have only this poem to give you
It comes from my heart and soul
And if you read it every day
Then you will surely know
That I think of you most often
Every minute of every day
And hope that you think of me also
In some happy little way

When I think of your arms around me
The way you kissed away my tears
I have the strength to face another day
Without losing myself to my fears
How I long to be beside you
And lie in your arms so sweet
Oh, darling, don't forget me
Until again we meet.

Bangor Nights and Belfast Days
(Written in Ireland 2001)

All the locals are packed in the corner pub
Where everyone knows everyone
In the farthest room back, old songs are sung
Like the “Star of the County Down”

And earlier that day in Belfast town
Just fourteen miles away
A Protestant gunned a Catholic down
And the bonfires burned all day

And the hate goes out and comes round again
Oh, who will die today
While in Bangor town fourteen miles away
The locals sing and play

In Bangor town when the sun goes down
All are one and the same
But in Belfast town fourteen miles away
Hate is the name of the game

And the hate goes out and comes round again
Oh, who will die today
While in Bangor town fourteen miles away
The locals sing and play

In Belfast town when the sun goes down
Only God knows what life will cost
And the innocent pay in the light of day
For a cause that is all but lost

And the hate goes out and comes round again
Oh, who will die today
While in Bangor town fourteen miles away
The locals sing and play

Can’t we all be friends and join hands
Our God is one in the same
I can’t believe that He would approve
Of murder in His name

And the hate goes out and comes round again
Oh, who will die today
While in Bangor town fourteen miles away
The locals sing and play.

Afraid to Fly

We’re so afraid to love again;
Does that mean we’ll never fly
With wings of gold and hearts so true
To a love that cannot die?

And what if I was born for you,
And you were meant for me;
If our souls only pass and never touch,
How can love ever be?

This fear can only bring us harm
And leave us all alone;
What greater things can I give to you
Than my dreams, my heart, my soul?

I Love You More

I love you more than all the words
To my most favorite song in the world;
I love you more than ice cream in July,
Than the American flag unfurled.

I Could Love You

I could love you, my friend
As sure as the sun shines above
Take my hand and kiss my lips
Let me show you love

I could love you, my friend
As sure as the sky is blue
I can walk away without looking back
But I can never forget about you

I could love you, my friend
Surely, you can feel it, too
The fire that dances between us
The bond between me and you

I could love you, my friend
And I miss you every day
That you’re not here beside me
To help me find my way

I could love you, my friend
And so patiently I will wait
Until you can see more clearly
The road you will finally take.

One Day

If happiness is not meant for me
And love and laughter will never be
Then take my heart and set it free
Like a butterfly on the run

Fly me away on wings of light
Through azure skies and gardens bright
Gently leave me to my flight
So that one day love may come.

Elusive Cupid

I tried to phone Cupid, but Cupid hid out;
He telegraphed, “You’ve had enough.
So many lonely people in the world,
And you keep giving up!”

I fell into a funk; surely I would die;
Without a love I wondered how I ever could survive,
But Cupid hopped a train to Mexico and threw away his bow;
Joined a mariachi band and left me on my own.

Dragonfly 

One day I sat in a garden of dreams
Feeling lonely and blue
So I followed a dragonfly to a rainbow
And there at its end, I found you

When I was young, I had many dreams
But they never seemed to come true
Until I followed that dragonfly
And found my dream in you

Now I wake each morning
Knowing the day draws near
When I will run into your arms
With a heart void of sorrow and fear

And as I lay me down to sleep
Each night I have to pray
And thank God for that beautiful dragonfly
That led me to you one day.

Happy Birthday

Thank God for your birthday, baby
For if that day had never come
You wouldn't be here on this Earth
Alive for me to love

Thank the heavens for that moment
For that wonderful, special day
That allowed us to find each other
Though you were far away

Yes, happy birthday, darling
I'm so glad that you're alive
Can't imagine life without you now
Don't even want to try

You're all I could ever hope for
And the last that I hope to love
Thank God for your birthday, baby
For sending you from above.

Loving On Faith

I love you on faith
It's a little like religion
You're far away and I can't touch you
But you’re my highest vision

And faith is all I have
Until I hold you in my arms
And the devil would like to erase you
From this weakened heart

But I'm holding onto you
Like I'm holding on for dear life
Because my faith lifts you high
Though the loneliness cuts like a knife

But I love you on faith
And I believe that you're mine
I rise above all this tragedy
And in imaginary arms I fly

And when the darkness falls
And all I can feel is the pain
I pull on all my faith in you
And call out your sweet name

One day you will come to me
And I will know I was right
To keep my faith in your sweet love
Even through the darkest night.

Sometimes

Sometimes I cry
When I think of you
So far away
What will I do?

Sometimes I cry
From want of you
From raw desire
What will I do?

Touch Me One More Time

Touch me one more time
Before you leave me,
Can't you see me
As I am?

And if you think
You will deceive me,
Please believe me
If you can.

I've been in love before
And lost that love;
Without a push or shove,
It left me behind.

I've been happy for a little while,
Then I've cried my tears;
It seems for years and years,
I've been so blind.

So won't you touch me one more time
Before you leave me,
Look into my eyes, and try to see me
As I am.

Shooting Star

I look up at the dark night sky,
As the wind lets out a lonely sigh;
Close my eyes and say a prayer
That a shooting star will find me here.

Hear his voice floating by
Whispering a lovers' lullaby;
Reach out to touch his soft, sweet hair
And find that he's not really there.

 Shooting star in the dark night sky,
See me standing here tonight;
Give me a chance to wish for the one
Who fills my dark days with the sun.

Just one dear chance to fulfill this dream
And hold him close through eternity;
Torn between desire and what is best
My weary heart won't let me rest.

Searching my soul for a better day,
Sometimes I want to run away;
I hear his laughter, imagine his touch;
Want to be with him so much.

Dark and dreary starless night,
Lend me some of heaven's light;
Open his heart, his mind, his soul,
And tell him that I love him so.

I'll watch the sky for something surreal
That let's me know this love is real,
As I stand far from the light of day
Waiting for that star to fall my way.

 

Ode to the Songwriter
(For Van Morrison)

I fly away on your sound,
On the wings of a dove, I’m heaven-bound
Upon words and music as sweet as love,
My soul soars to places high above,

And the chaos and hate that surround me now
No longer matter on a sainted brow;
There’s so much more than we can see
Hiding in eternity

When dewdrops fall on petals soft,
I’ll open my wings and fly aloft
To hear the sweet music that you’ve made;
My very heart to offer in trade.

On Camden Street
(Written in Ireland 2001)

I sleep, I pace
I eat, I race
Down the avenue

I laugh, I smile
Pretend a while
On Camden Street

The sun, the rain
It’s all the same
On Camden Street

Where is he now
Get through somehow
On Camden Street

Here I am
Alone again
On Camden Street.