Waiting

Boreas, by John William Waterhouse, 1903

cruel hours mark the steps of time in vain

one lover's joy is other lover's pain

with hands of hope each petal of the rose

is unplucked, soft, as if by mighty rain

all love's complaints ascend to heavy skies

in feathered worries and in dusty eyes

and endless heartache melts to untold vows

as liquid longing flows from teary sighs

in waiting lonely lips breathe out despair

dreams fly away and vanish in thin air

until the precious moment when your love appears

and all is beautiful again, and true, and fair...