Love Poem Poem by J. Barrett Wolf

I would deny Galileo
Make the moon the center of the universe
The tides a commandment
From the very lips of an ancient God
If that would draw her near the
Unpolished sapphire that lies
At core of my chest.

I would carry off the philosopher's stone
Spirit away Moses' parting staff
Retrieve fine Arthur's sunken blade
From the green, wild mere of Avalon.
If that or all good magic could
Sway a heart to open free from
Echoed scraping pain gone by,
From eyes that carve a thirst in flesh
And never offer safety.

I would walk or crawl or be carried
From hither to yon and twice back again
Stride, as our parents swore they did
Uphill both ways, in ninety-degree heat
Through snow up to here...
I would supplicate
I would bow.
Take up my workman's tools and pen.
Construct a home, a world,
A universe of adoration.

But, I can no more build a noble love
By force of will
Than I might create a precious stone
By squeezing charcoal in my hand.
She will no more be possessed
Than one might possess a mountain
Or a sunrise
An earthquake or the moon.