The Poet And The Musician: A Love Story Poem by Lorraine Margueritte Gasrel Black

'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all'
Alfred Lord Tennyson

***
A friend of mine once told me
This story one sad night
So inspired I wrote it down
This love story, strong, wrong or right
The romance of Suzanna and Lee
Star-crossed lovers from a small town.

ONE

They met one eve at a dance
Amid laughter, Suzanna and Lee
And on the wings of fortune and chance
Love blossomed beautifully
They made quite a pair
Waltzing under the moon
As their spouses angrily glared
Swept in his arms Suzanna swooned
Lee slipped her to the night's air
When revived, they talked for awhile
Of life and love, dreams to share
And with a bond and secret smiles
Become lovers and swore love true.

To the Fates they threw caution
Forgot the others they hugged
Though they'd drunk their portion
Unbeknown, their drink had been drugged
What started in laughter, ended in tears
For a brief moment love shone so bright
Lee whispered a promise in her ear
She smiled, kept it through the night.

He brought her home, went to his quarters
With sweet memories clinging love's light
And steeping deep in love's heavenly waters
He felt a love, strong and right.

Her husband wondered where she had been
But Suzanna held on to her fears
For Lee found her; love in between
When love is lost from those once dear.

With wild passion, Lee claimed her
By rights, chained by love
Yet cruel fate would tear asunder
By destiny's hand, above.

Love born deep, soul of heart
In a child so beautiful
Sowed the seed, Lee's part
For they had not been careful
With a love meant for eternity
In the dreams that lovers hug
Yet she by morn, lost memory
In the drink someone carelessly drugged.

TWO

Lee searched all over
For his dear sweet lover
But could not find her place
With fear on his face
For he had known
The love he felt had grown...


For, her husband had told
Another child.(He was cold)
Though a smile painted his face
Then he moved them to a new place.


A sweet son was born
One bright September morn
To Suzana and Lee
And she smiled so radiantly.

THREE

In the new neighborhood
Lee found Suzanna and son
Kept hidden, though he knew he should
Talk to his love, claim his only son
Though her husband claimed him as his
Lee was thrilled by fatherhood
Knew he could not leave her like this

For his wife no child could she bear
And children Lee sadly missed
So one night under the stars, he dared
Approach Suzanna with this;

He spoke of the night time tossed afar
Memory of passion, love so wild, a tryst
Lost in Time's timeless corridors, unbarred
Pierced by the dawn.Light memories mist.

He sang of paradise
And told of his deep love for her
As love glowed deep in his eyes
Life on the road, with a star he offered
And Suzanna could write for the band
He told of how he had sought her
To ask her for her sweet hand
But she could not remember or think
How he pleaded her to remember
Though that memory was lost to that drink

In a flash with quick surprise
Truth awoke.The love of her life
As worlds promised, light in their eyes
She wanted Lee, be his wife
As they kissed, hugged the joy in their hearts
And happy was their reunion
But haunting doubts tore apart
Marred the hope in love's sweetest union.

In the dreams true lovers all seek
Reality threw deep clarity
And at real life they had to peek
And lost was hope to desparity.

For Suzanna you see
Had more children at home
And settled she felt they should be
Not on the road to roam.

So, hard was the choice they made
As the tears filled their eyes
To the fates a high price paid
In a dream they had to let die
For with her husband she would stay
And promised to raise Lee's son right
And he promised that someday
He would come back, then faded from sight.

FOUR

As love can burn deep, long in the heart
Dwells in dreams they would follow
Lee followed his, as time tore apart
Behind smiles he hid bitter sorrow.

He went very far, became a big star
Suzanna bought his album, one day
In a love song of love flown afar
Was his heartbreak in the tunes that played

For life played its joke
Though memory haunts, sparks anew
O The love that Heaven spoke.
As the days passed, how she rued
For her Lee, most dearest beloved
And in her poems she wrote of love, true.
She mused at the Fates above
Why can't lovers be allowed to be free?
Like the wildflowers or dreams thought of
And deeply she longed for her Lee

FIVE

Transfered were they, another small town
In new starts a good life found
And happiness chased away the sad frown
Deep contentment with life would abound

But the fates had something else in store
As one night a storm raged terribly
Caught several boats in its roar
Suzanna lost her husband at sea

In deep depression, she moved to Seattle
Wearing ebony, lace and misery
She mourned her husband; in time's battle
And in shock forgot about Lee

Reclused, she kept herself from the world
And wrote poetry, sent out some songs
Lost was she in poetry's pearl
In a love grown deeper, so strong.

SIX

As time flew by, the road claimed Lee
The band traveled far and wide
As hearts unraveled; a success became he
Though he drifted alone in the tide

For lost or found he felt life's twist
As he walked upon two shores
And hollow he felt was victory's kiss
Empty, forlorn and lonely to the core.

For haunted by a memory
Of a face he once knew
He sought among the crowds, hopefully
Suzanna's face to view

And always he sang that special tune
Hoping someday soon...

Suzanna had sent him many letters
But Lee never received them
And behind he thought it better
Broken-hearted he set her by then.

In a bar, on a juke-box he played
A song of love so true and untarnished
For in Suzanna's lyric, a strong love said
As he stood there shocked and astonished.

But..O fateful night.
After his band finished playing
Someone started a fight
On his head a crushing blow strayed
And near death, he lay dying
To God, was his sight
In a coma the mind set flying
And fled all memory
To darkness fled the light
And long was his recovery.

SEVEN

Amid thundering applause
At the Music Awards
Summoned by its good cause
Lee and his band stepped forward
To play their solid gold hit
And she in the crowd sat
In tears and shocked to her wits.

Suzanna's turn came
To accept an award
For a lyric, she claimed
Nervously she faced forward
For there stood her Lee
Clapping loudest of all
And his eyes gleamed, tearfully

Then back to her table
She walked from the stage
Hoping Lee if he was able
O, TURN BACK TIME.Start a new page
But when he sat down beside her
They both knew somehow
The love they once treasured
Was now lost between the two.

EIGHT

Life is the greatest comedy
In essence dreams are real
But for those who lose so tragically
In the fate they once had sealed
As love abounds in many places
And true love should give chance
And in romance which sets the pace
As the hope of Life's sweetest dance
For the dreams that should be followed
Born in mind and soul and heart
Can turn to bitter sorrow
In sweet love torn apart.
So a toast to the few are brave
And let no dream slip by
Only faith can give or save
As dreams can live or die
When left to a better day
Takes its toll-a greater cost
As the pawns of a game so played
In a love once found, then lost.

NINE

Through her bitter tears, she cried
And wrote Lee one more song
His part in her would never die
And bravely she said...so long


Roses And Rainbows

I was handed a rainbow
But could not hold the sky
In a song you sang to me
I heard you say 'good-bye'
I was handed a rose
In its petals love would hide
If I could believe your magic
You love abounds inside.

As time's treasure I will keep
The tears you tried to hide
As I turned away in sorrow
The memories will abide
For it was in that rainbow
The golden tears had lied
and in the song you gave me
and in the words'good-bye'

In a heart now broken
Like a rainbow in the sky
Dissolves as love's sweet token
In a dream that drifted by
You handed me a rainbow
In the rose that lived, then died
And on Love's wings forever
Is whispered my ''good-bye'
*******************************

Lee came to a peaceful end
Sought God in silence vowed
Suzanna's heart would never mend
To the Final Curtain she bowed
And somewhere in Time's memory
As only Eternity can bestow
Lives the romance of Suzanna and Lee
And to their memory, I close now.