tyrannie de la nuit (sestina)

i shall wait as this trembling river
meet the setting sun and the dark night
i shall wait for the stars, the moon,
the desolate willow to behold my plight.
and as the sparrow weeps its burning tears,
i shall let the shadows hide me from the years.

we have let our sad affair echo through the years
while the only witness is this lazy river
i have let you go while i wept with muted tears
as we surrender our innocence to the lonesome night
the stars smile to write the melody of our endless plight,
and the overture unfolds amidst the clouded moon

shield me from the darkness, my light, my moon
hide me from the wisdom of bygone years
let me not suffer the fallen angels' plight
who folded their wings to drown in this river
dont let me be lost in this cruel night
wash my pain and sorrow with heaven's tears

as this dark hour brings more tainted tears,
my damp eyes are outshined by the solitary moon
the angry sky curses this faithless night
with memories we've buried in forgotten years.
still i hear our song in this quiet river
mocking my fallen courage and our fateful plight

would the sunset remember the hopeless plight
of love gone lost in between unspent tears?
would you go back to hear this lonely river
cry out its pain to the stubborn moon?
will tomorrow find me seeking the wasted years
while yeaterday buries our woes in the distant night?

my soul is clenched by the sadness of the night
while the wind plays the mournful music of our plight
where did they go, all those passing years?
why did we shed all these fragile tears?
how did dark night claim our reveries from the moon
and spill our emptiness on the banks of this river?

the night holds no answers, only more silent tears
as our plight lay naked under the unforgiving moon
years will find me, alone once more, as the wind sweeps across this river


11.22.2003.10.33.a.m.