Halcyon (The Sweetest Year) Poem by Thomas Donnelly

When I was young, a boy of ten and three
I knew of love with naive clarity
My love burned bright, but dimmed as each day passed
It turned to ash. It burned out naturally.

A child's heart is fickle, underlined
With good intentions. Likewise unconfined
Were thoughts which said 'You love her not, move on! '
And so I left the ones I loved behind.

Yet when I sat and pondered in disgrace
I saw a girl I knew, a pretty face
Possessed of subtle-soft regality
Her gentle smiles filled up my empty space.

She was my little secret, tucked away
Inside my dreams, a magnolia fay
Whose presence stoked, not quenched, affection's fire
My love only burned brighter every day.

And so began our romances sublime
So long ago when love was in its prime
Before a Demon tore us both apart
But that's a story for another time.

So when the lonely winds of life do blow
I think of her, the girl of long ago
Who loved me in that year of burning heat.
The sweetest year that I will ever know!