Did you ever think about love
When you sat in your kitchen looking
out your round window at the garden
on the hill? You must have
loved when you lived across the River.
I imagine you pulling a girl’s dark curls
and running away. I loved you

when you realized you must make
a sacrifice for the land you cherished
and set out on the journey
that would steal your blissfulness and joy
and leave you naked in the dark.
I loved you when you were weak,
too weak to carry on alone.
If I could have I would
have carried you up the Mountain
on MY back, loving you more
with each step, praying for your will
to be restored when we reached
the Crack.
No turning back, because I love you.
Did you ever think about love

when you returned to your beloved country?
If I could have I would
have married you that blessed year.
Maybe then you would have stayed,
gained renown in the land. Or maybe
you would go anyway, and I would
go, too. Beyond the White Towers, into
the West
to be with you for eternity,
but it’s not meant to be.