The Inter-Stellar Medium - Andrew Barham

My heart is as full
As the space between
Stars distant from here
To eternity …

“Oh how I love you!”

I do remember
A young girl's caress
The touch of her hand
As soft as satin –

Have I grown so old
My heart grown so cold
I can love no more?
Such forgotten lore,
The tale whose ending
Far distant trending
Towards happiness
Ever after – No less! –
Breaks instead on shoals
Of those wedded goals
Not equally shared;
Unequally paired,
Two people in love,
A wolf and a dove …

Are we really one
Like the Moon and Sun,
The Yang and the Yin
Cycling out and in
As one becomes two
And I become you
As you become me?
Distant liberty …

Happily we met
Ever after sweet;
We thought we were set,
The world at our feet
An oyster we plucked
Whose sweet juice we sucked:

This story is old,
Has oft-times been told
Round the camp-fire's glow,
How she did bestow
Upon me her sweet grace;
Soft contours, her face
Alive with promise,
The promise of bliss
In her sparkling eyes –
Is it all just lies?
Why – I want to know –
Does it so wrong go?

What do we expect
From this thing called love?
Surely not regret!
But a treasure trove
As two tender hearts
Vow to never part!

Andrew Barham