But, soft! what light through yonder window breaks?
It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.
Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,
Who is already sick and pale with grief,
That thou, her maid, art far more fair than she.
Be not her maid, since she is envious;
Her vestal livery is but sick and green
And none but fools do wear it; cast it off.
It is my lady, O, it is my love!
O, that she knew she were!
She speaks yet she says nothing; what of that?
Her eye discourses; I will answer it.
I am too bold, 'tis not to me she speaks.
Two of the fairest stars in all the heaven,
Having some business, do entreat her eyes
To twinkle in their spheres till they return.
What if her eyes were there, they in her head?
The brightness of her cheek would shame those stars,
As daylight doth a lamp; her eyes in heaven
Would through the airy region stream so bright
That birds would sing and think it were not night.
See, how she leans her cheek upon her hand!
O, that I were a glove upon that hand,
That I might touch that cheek!

O, speak again, bright angel! for thou art
As glorious to this night, being o'er my head
As is a winged messenger of heaven

William Shakespeare
Romeo and Juliet: Act 2, Scene 2

Den Tod niemand zwingen kunnt
Bei allen Menschenkindern,
Das macht' alles unsre Sünd,
Kein Unschuld war zu finden.
Davon kam der Tod so bald
Und nahm über uns Gewalt,
Hielt uns in seinem Reich gefangen.
Halleluja!


Christ lag in Todesbanden
Martin Luther
Cantata BWV 4
Johann Sebastian Bach

View translation.

Love

Love is a breach in the walls, a broken gate,
Where that comes in that shall not go again;
Love sells the proud heart's citadel to Fate.
They have known shame, who love unloved. Even then
When two mouths, thirsty each for each, find slacking,
And agony's forgot, and hushed the crying
Of credulous hearts, in heaven – such are but taking
Their own poor dreams within their arms, and lying
Each in his lonely night, each with a ghost.
Some share that night. But they know, love grows colder,
Grows false and dull, that was sweet lies at most.
Astonishment is no more in hand or shoulder,
But darkens, and dies out from kiss to kiss.
All this is love; and all love is but this.

By Rupert Brooke (1887-1915), English poet

By Pablo Neruda (1904-1973), Chilean writer
Cien Sonetos de Amor (100 Love Sonnets)

Sonnet XVII

I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz,
or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that never blooms
but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers;
thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance,
risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
so I love you because I know no other way

than this: where I does not exist, nor you,
so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,
so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.

Originally published in Canto on 7 January 2007

My Begotten Son
Left His heavenly glory for a lowly birth
Treaded the path of earthly sorrows
Endured persecution from His own creation
Died a slow, torturous, and humiliating death

My precious, precious child
I already gave you My Begotten Son
What good shall I withhold from you?
Abide in Me
Trust Me

It's a latitude where you can't tell
whether you're living in dreams or reality
Or ever floating in-between
People say life is but a dream, but these days
I am unsure which is which

Reached up my hand, through the water's surface
into thick air, that felt void
my body hanging mid air

A city of smog underneath
Bustling in an awful silence
Blood trickles down my toes
Drips down, vanishes in the clouds
wait
One drop fell on a man's head
Down his hair, into his scalp

Still he went about his business
Not knowing

True Beauty
written by Mandisa, Drew Ramsey, and Cindy Morgan

Do you think that a California girl is
Supposed to have curls and wear a jean size 3?
All the curves in all the right places
Spray tanned face just like on TV?
And we read in the gospel of Vogue that
We're all supposed to dress and move and be
Visions of perfection
Such a misconception
'Cause the real connection is deeper than the eye can see

What's inside of you
What's inside of me
The hands that made the moon and stars
The mountains and the seas
Made you wonderful, beautiful, marvelously
Let the whole world see your
True beauty

Don't know much about Dolce & Gabbana
Seems like a lot of drama to me
And you can keep all your red high heels
And open-toed shoes - I'm good in my bare feet
Let's go down to the nitty gritty
Enough sex and the city
What about purity?
Skin is just the surface
The passion and the purpose that's burning down inside us
Is really what we need to see

Doesn't come in a bottle, doesn't come in a box
You can't spray it on, you can't wash it off
You can't nip and tuck, you can't sew it up
So don't waste your time
It's the love in your heart, the peace in your soul
The hope in your smile lets the whole world know
This little light - you gotta let it shine