poems about love

Of the Father's love begotten Ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega, He the source, the ending he,
Of the things that are, that have been, And that future years shall see.

This is he whom heav'n-taught singers Sang of old with one accord,
Whom the Scriptures of the prophets Promised in their faithful word;
Now he shines, the long-expected; Let creation praise its Lord.

O ye heights of heav'n, adore him Angel hosts, his praises sing;
All dominions, bow before him, And extol our God and King;

At setting day and rising morn,
—Wi' soul that still shall love thee,
I'll ask o' Heaven thy safe return,
—Wi' a' that can improve thee.
I'll visit aft the birken bush
—Where first thou kindly tauld me
Sweet tales o' love, and hid my blush,
—Whilst round thou didst infauld me.

To a' our haunts I will repair,
—By greenwood, shaw, or fountain,
Or where the summer day I'd share
—Wi' thee upon yon mountain:
There will I tell the trees an' flooers,
—From thoughts unfeigned an' tender;

For now, love thou, I rede, Christ, as I thee tell:
And with Angels take thy stead; that joy look thou nought sell!
In earth thou hate, I rede, all that thy love may fell:
For Love is stalworth as the death, Love is hard as hell.

Love is a light burden, Love gladdeth young and old;
Love is without pine, as lovers have me told;
Love is a ghostly wine, that makes men big and bold:
Of Love shall he nothing tyne that it in heart will hold.

But fleshly love shall fare as doth the flower in May

Long have I dreamed of love's adventure,
Long have I sung of love's desire,
Songs that I sang with red lips laughing,
Hot with the flame of borrowed fire.

Now I have felt your arms about me,
Now that my lips on your lips have lain,
Mute with the memory of your kisses,
How shall I sing of love again?

He was the first to welcome Spring;
Adventurous, he came
To wake the dreaming buds and sing
The crocus into flame.

He loved the morning and the dew;
He loved the sun and rain;
He fashioned lyrics as he flew
With love for their refrain.

Poet of vines and blossoms, he;
Beloved of them all;
The timid leaves upon the tree
Grew bold at his glad call.

He sang the rapture of the hills,
And from the starry height
He brought the melody that fills
The meadows with delight.

“Teach me, love, to be true;
Teach me, love, to love;
Teach me to be pure like you.
It will be more than enough!

“Ah, and in days to come,
Give me, my seraph, too,
A son nobler than I,
A daughter true like you:

“A son to battle the wrong,
To seek and strive for the right;
A beautiful daughter of song,
To point us on to the light!”

The moon is in love with the nightingale,
And the nightingale worships the rose;
But the red rose bleeds for the young and pale
Queen of the garden close.

The young queen turns to a singing clown
Whose lips have a single tune;
She leans to him like a ray bent down. …
But he is in love with the moon.

How much do you love me, a million bushels?
Oh, a lot more than that, Oh, a lot more.

And tomorrow maybe only half a bushel?
Tomorrow maybe not even a half a bushel.

And is this your heart arithmetic?
This is the way the wind measures the weather.

Then heaven I sought, and heaven-high designs:—
The robes of angels glittered o'er my gaze,
And at them I forgot green earthly bays,
The hills of earth, the meadows and the vines,
The blue waves laughing in tumultuous lines,
The glittering ferns that trembled o'er the ways;
Love vanished in a vast seraphic blaze
Of plumes ascending,—reddening all the pines.

The love of earth was changed to love of heaven:
The star of hope was not the star of even
But rather the pale tremulous orb of death:

If we should ever meet again
When many tedious years are past;
When time shall have unbound the chain,
And this sad heart is free at last;
Then shall we meet and look unmoved,
As though we ne'er had met—had loved!
And I shall mark without a tear
How cold and calm thy altered brow;
I shall forget thou once wert dear,
Rememb'ring but thy broken vow!
Rememb'ring that in trusting youth
I loved thee with the purest truth;
That now the fleeting dream is o'er,
And thou canst raise the spell no more!