Sonnet
by Brian
Love must be as much a light, as it is a flame.
~ Henry David Thoreau
We’ve been talking sonnets in the Thomas house lately.
See, my oldest son has a girlfriend who, unlike most teens, usually smells really nice. And wanting to be an example for the boy viz a vie how to treat a young lady, I often tell her so. “You smell nice today,” I say. And she usually smiles, perhaps glad that someone took the time to notice her efforts.
The other day, I outdid myself.
We were talking about all this, her and my son and my wife and I, about how ladies appreciate compliments. Not just about their looks, their style, or their bouquet of choice, but about many other things as well. Like their opinions, their dreams. The things that make them tick. And not just compliments, for even those can get old, feel patronizing, after a time. No, they also appreciate it when we engage them regarding things they are passionate about. The give and take, back and forth of honest-to-God communication.
But let’s face it. Sometimes, ladies just want to hear us tell them how much we love them. And why. So, by way of example, I broke into a weak attempt at a love poem. Something straight out of Song of Solomon . . .
“Your hair is like the lilacs blowing in the sweet summer breeze!”
“Your face more radiant than the gentle glow of the lightning bug!”
Yeah. Weak. And embarrassing I guess, because my son and his girlfriend suddenly left the room, leaving that “You’re so weird!” laughter in their wake.
I can handle weird.
Today is my wife’s birthday. And I love her so much that I wrote her a sonnet:
Some say thou art a darling specimen,
And I sometimes begrudgingly concur,
For while thine beauty surely crieth “Ten!”
I see thee with eyes tear-stained and a-blur.
The gallery sees only but a part,
Each tiny glance a fragment of the whole,
Instead I see completeness in thine heart.
I’m blinded by the light within thy soul.
For in thy fullness I am found complete!
A puzzle solved, a masterpiece beheld!
Along a weary path have trod thy feet,
And with each step the demons quickly felled!
So long as I can have thee by my side,
My mind is resting and my pathway wide.
Some piece of work, right? Like me, it’s a work in progress. But maybe someday I’ll be poetically equipped to tell her how much she means to me. Until then, we’ll just keep walking this road together, getting older in each other’s embrace . . .
this part:
The gallery sees only but a part,
Each tiny glance a fragment of the whole,
Instead I see completeness in thine heart.
I’m blinded by the light within thy soul.
You are SO WEIRD! ;p
you are also very sweet and so very in love with a lovely woman
Happy birthday to G!
that was lovely.
but you’re still weird.
That was great. I think it was poetically creative. I am quite sure your wife is appreciative of your expression of love.
I’m hoping sonnet writing means you have left your brussel sprout phase and entered zucchini world?
For me, two of some of the most important things in a relationship are communication and appreciation.
If I knew your son, the advice I would give him is to try and “connect” with the girl. If someone really likes another person, it’s easy to take an interest in what they are saying and doing. Compliments for the sake of trying to win some favour will be seen for what they are and will undermine his efforts.
Your ode communicates and shows appreciation. I have no doubt that your wife enjoy the sentiment.
I’m a day late, but please wish your lovely wife a very Happy Birthday from me. I’m certain she felt celebrated by you and your kids… as she should.
You are not weird, you are very sweet, very poetic and clearly love your wife very much. I can’t imagine she didn’t grin and give you extra special hugs [and stuff] after reading your sonnet. What a gift!
PS: Are those her cute feet? If so, I LOVE her feet! They’re perfect. [I have man feet.]
Yep, those are her feet. She says it’s the only picture of her I’m allowed to post . . .
And her birthday is actually today, Saturday. I posted this late last night . . .
Happy Birthday to your lovely wife! And I would melt at the mere idea of a sonnet being written for me. (I’m easy that way.)
“Yeah. Weak. And embarrassing I guess, because my son and his girlfriend suddenly left the room, leaving that “You’re so weird!” laughter in their wake.”
Yep weird – but in a quirky lovable sort of way. The sonnet is quite possibly my favorite birthday gift. It’s in close running with the cute little booklet your eldest dd made, the Hershey bars, and the hug from our 15 year old!
So if you’re the cheek, is she the neck that decides which way the cheek faces?
Happy (mumble mumbleth) Birthday, Mrs. Neck!
She decideth more than I probably care to admit . . .
UPDATE!! She just read this and says, “I am the brains . . . everything but the cheek!”
Um . . .
Happy Birthday to your wife. The sonnet is lovely and so is the thought put into it. The post made me go awwwww in a nice way, except when I giggled at your son and his girlfriend’s laughter. I get that kind of “your weird” laughter at times. I have two teen girls.
Here is a link to the lyrics of Stan Rogers’ song about a lying mirror; your sonnet reminded me of it.
http://www.asklyrics.com/display/Stan_Rogers/Lies_Lyrics/642945.htm
Eerie. I may have to find the song and give it a listen. Thanks for sharing . . .
Ya know, reading this again this morning, I can’t believe how Jerry Maguire it sounds . . . I’m hopeless!
lol. It’s definitely not Jerry Maguire bad. At least you had the marbles to post it.
Aw, how very sweet. You two are very lucky indeed and blessed more than you can know! Happy birthday -late – to the wife.
What a lovely post, a lovely poem. You are very correct about ladies enjoying compliments, and all the things we like to be complimented on. And you are also right that too many compliments can feel forced and patronizing. “I love you” is the best thing he can say. Your wife is very lucky to be loved so fully and unconditionally. Not every woman finds that in life. I hope she had a wonderful birthday!
Thanks for all the birthday greetings everyone!!
I am way more than a day late, but wish her well for me. For your anniversary, write her a sestina. I have the feeling you will LOVE the challenge.
What must it be like, spewing sonnets at random? Unless a well placed curse is a sonnet, I shall never know.
I didn’t read this before, but it’s very nice. As much as your son thinks you’re weird now, it’s a good lesson (and he should take it with him). Besides, any attempt at romantical poetry is romantic, no matter how it turns out. IMO.