For The Reader's Ear

No, that was not passion,
It was the vague tenderness
Inspired by a sickly child,
Lang syne, and moon pale nights.

The spirit sings only
When the heart is moved,
When, shaken by love-s power, it trembles,
Broods, draws back, says not a word.

True passion might in fact
Have been...these pages,
That were they written in happier times
Would have appeared as tears, not verses.