“Love is so short, forgetting is so long..” Pablo Neruda, ‘Love’

For example, I might say.one fine evening when I was sixteen
Not stuck in rowdy pubs with dazzling chandeliers,
But walking with her, carelessly, by the river..
We promenade under beech trees
Everything smells so good, so fragrant,
When you are young,.the air is so sweet
You close your eyelids and we kiss;
The wind is laden with odd noises: mooing cows, driven cars
Our city is not far away, only as far as Andromeda.
Scents of wine and scents of beer on our breaths
The sky is azure and you smell so good....,

Maybe, I was stung by a bad star,
Fading like sweet shivers, small and all white, you start to go away from me
Even on this July night, never to return, even in light years of time.

We were intoxicated, wandering freely in the fields of desire
Throbbing our mad hearts, deceiving ourselves, blissfully.
Under the light of a yellow lamppost we kissed goodnight.

Walking home, I passed traffic lights, drunks, my future self,
Love ended when August was out
School and work and London dragged us apart
My quick wit made you laugh one last time, you made me swoon.
The adored became one figure on one evening long ago.
But now you are the subject of this old man's verse.

I have deigned to write you, at last
All things must pass
And I can no longer say: I love you I love you I love you,
I've searched all year for these few measly words
And I look at you still. I know, your girlish body is now matronly
And you may well be dead. As may I. Still,, love is in my heart and head,.
Your taste and sight do not depend on lips or fingers or even eyes
I'm looking at you now from afar, your fragile beauty, no disguise....