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| Happy ducks cooling off @ Hanama`ulu Stream! |
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| Photo: Karl Lo | August 18, 2003 |
THE
LETTERS OF LOVE
I tried to use all the words at my command
To move the muses to compassion,
But words failed me -- they often do --
And all I can offer are the four letters of LOVE.
L is for the
LIGHT
that guides us through
the dark tunnels of life;
O is for the
OPENNESS
that voids secrets
and allows understanding;
V is for the
VICTORY
that love assures
whatever the challenge;
E is for ETERNITY
--
love without end. (1973)
PIECES OF LOVE
To Karl
The mosaic we are making together
Grows larger with each passing year
As we add more pearls of experience
That we pick on life's journey.
And the varied pieces of love
We find on shady lanes,
On rocky shores and rugged terrain,
On calm or windy days.
Across the ferried waters of our faith,
We will continue to gather,
Adding the pearly pieces of love
To the ever expanding mosaic.
(1972)
Photo:
Karl Lo | August 13, 2004
| Ahukini Landing is in the distance. |
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| View of the bay from Hanama`ulu Beach. |
IF YOU MUST HAVE AN ANSWER
For Karl
‘Tis the 29th of March,
Not the Ides of March
But just as dark and ominous a night:
Not the kind of night people in love
Choose to spend together
Under Hawaiian skies.
We drive five miles to Ahukini Landing,
Which is charged with lightning,
We park near the water’s edge.
A light is moving in the distance.
“A fisherman with a lamp,” you
explain.
We watch the light as it moves in the dark,
And wish the fisherman a bountiful catch.
I suspect that fishing is very much
In your mind, too,
And my guess is certainly on cue:
You cast your recurring line:
“Will you marry me?” a third time.
My mind argues with my heart …
My heart reasons with my mind …
My soul is the arbiter --
Not the threatening sky.
I believe you pray to have the night
Punctuated with a period: I say, “Yes.” (1972)
| Anniversary Roses from Sister Dely & Brother Roy |
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| Karl Lo Photo: January 4, 2005 |
LOVE IN FOUR STANZAS (1972/2004)
For
Karl
1. Serendipity Is a Gift from God
You were a blind date I went out with
Just to please a friend:
Life has a way of bringing gifts
In unpretentious ways.
We went to see Three Blind Mice.
An amusing coincidence, wasn’t it?
Or was it punning providence
That planned that Saturday night?
I was wearing a red silk Chinese dress
Which was not meant to impress you --
I did not even know your name
Let alone your Cantonese ethnicity.
I went on that December blind date
Just to please a friend:
Serendipity is providential:
Serendipity if a gift of God.
2: I Learn to Accept
Three months into our friendship
You stop asking me to "go steady" with you,
And I am glad:
I want to be free.
You drop your old line,
But you pick up a new one:
“Will you marry me?”
It’s a harder line to connect with.
You are always full of surprises
And I am learning to accept
The different and the unexpected.
So when you call to tell me
You want to go out for a ride
I do not ask, Where? Tonight?
On this wet and windy night?
In this thunder and lightning night?
3: A
Surprise Christmas Gift
Christmas is a season of giving.
Christmas is a season of receiving.
Christmas is a season of love.
The biggest gift that Christmas morning was
you:
Sitting at the back pew in a light blue shirt
At the eight o’clock Christmas service.
You had come to the Christmas Eve
Candlelight Communion Service of carols:
Your presence eight hours later was a surprise.
Little did I know you were seriously in love:
Love is not always easy to recognize:
Love has a way of putting on a mask.
| Lipstick Plant in Bloom |
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| Karl Lo Photo: November 2007 |
4: Love Is a Special Way of Feeling
Love is a special way of feeling
Shown in many ways:
In that loving look
That guides our feelings;
In that sincere smile
That only love can give;
In that gentle touch
That makes us feel alive;
In that open-mindedness
That accepts who and what we are.
Love is a special way of feeling
Expressed in three easy words:
Said each day we are together,
Morning, noon, and night;
Written in a letter,
Expressed in a short note,
Said over the telephone
When we are apart:
Love is a special way of feeling
Expressed in three easy words:
I love you.
MEDALLION PORTRAIT OF LOVE
On the obverse, boldly engraved:
Tender like the caress of a lover
Warm like the hug of a friend
Caring like a sister, like a neighbor.
Gentle like the trade winds
Generous like a grandmother
Always in bloom like red anthurium
Here yesterday, today, tomorrow.
On the reverse, in timid lines:
Rough and hard like brick
Tough like a trigonometry teacher’s
Tricky weekend assignment.
Tired and cantankerous like Mr. Wilson
Mischievous and thought-provoking
Like Dennis the Menace
Irritatingly knowing like Margaret.
©2002
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