Love letters in Lilac

I must confess sending them in my youth to former lovers. I could only hope they were smart enough to burn them after reading.

Love letters in Lilac 

By

Carlos Lorenzo Estrada 

I could profess my love for you

Yet would be meaningless without action.

Based purely on a speculative intent 

As well as the laws of attraction.

I could climb the highest mountain 

Such thought would question sanity 

I could swim the deepest sea

Though this body lacks in buoyancy.

Love letters written often received

Pale in comparisons to what actions achieve.

Dogmatic a virtue love often portends

Plunders the heart and soul often rends.

A cognitive dissonance poet's oft sound

Praising its ideas while its sorrow abounds.

I have burned and been burned 

I've been oppressed and have oppress.

This dichotomous ideology 

Is perplexing I confess.

Found redemption from its act

Strained convictions with attack.

I have battled against its notion

Cast doubt upon its devotion.

But at end we surrender to its very flighty nature.

For the alternative of love is yet a lonesome venture.

Author's Note

Thank you for taking the time to read this poem.

Reviews

[Chris Shaw]

Dear Carlos, I reflected on young love here. Your scented title is so enticing. I was drawn in to find a message loud and clear. It is actions that that speak volumes not words. The could haves here spoke to this reader:) Your poem reminded me of my first love who walked five miles in the pouring rain to ensure he kissed me goodnight. That had a huge impact on me. I wonder whether your letters caught the match or not :) I thoroughly enjoyed this read, how it made me ponder and how it brought back a first love who tragically died at 26. Thank you for the beauty of your poetry.

Chris

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you Chris for your comment and also sharing that very heart felt memory of your first love. It was touching to read. I had a similar experience with the first love of my life both of us teens and neighbors. Going outside in the pouring rain to kiss her as she leaned outside her bedroom window. I was magic. A memory I myself will never forget. Thank you for sharing your with me and the kind words on this poem. I did actually made love letters for her while spraying my moms perfume on the paper which had a strong scent of lavender. Was too young to own my own cologne and thought my mom's perfume smelled really nice. Years later me and my ex would laugh about it because she thought I enjoyed wearing female perfume. Eventually I started stealing sprays of my dad's old spice after shave cologne to put on the letters instead haha.

[Chris Shaw]

You know Carlos, I have to give you a full ten marks out of ten for the scented letters. Pinching your mum's perfume is an endearing thought to me. You know I quite liked the smell of old spice as well :) Enjoyed your share here :)

[Francis Rosenfeld]

Of course love matters. What else is there?

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Hmm let me think because this is an important question you ask. What else is there? A nice big tub of rock road ice cream, or mint chip, with sprinkles of course. I might take that over love any day, but of course that is just me hehehe. Ok I give in yes love does matter, but you gotta admit ice cream comes a close second. That or cookie dough. Mmmmm...cookie dough.

[Poetic Beauty]

Love is and can be so many things. It can create a boat load of other emotions and yes action is better than empty words that aren’t meant. But sometimes we need to hear those words as well. I love the whole thought process in this poem. Well done and expressed with deep thought

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you, PB, for reading and especially giving your thoughts on this work. I agree love needs both actions and words, because words are meaningless if they lack the actions to back them up. So many times people can say the word love but it loses its meaning if they fail to prove the value of it. And some may refuse to say the word and simply state haven't I proven it already by my actions. Because to them the word reflects deep commitment which they refuse to acknowledge and accept. For selfish reasons of course, perhaps because they like to leave their opportunities open for something better. At 55 love still proves mysterious to me. But that is due to my own individual choices more then anything. I can write effusively and profoundly of its beauty but it's simply words if I am lacking in its experience and trust. I try to capture multiple ends of the spectrum in this ideology of greater human empathy, but even in failure perhaps I learn something more about its enigma. For the most part we create art out of love, and it is in these words we are privileged to define love, individually. And I am grateful you have read and accompanied me on this journey into the meaning of this poem. I always enjoy another perspective on my writing because many times the reader sees something the writer doesn't. And they become my better eyes.

[Poetic Beauty]

Each person will take away something different from a poem because of different personalities and life experiences