LOVE POEMS

LOSS OF INNOCENCE

LOSS OF INNOCENCE


[The young swimmers are sometimes swallowed by the sharks.]



Oh, the pain of innocence,
That’s lost for the first time!
It is like a tender bud
Plucked in its very prime.

When the loss of innocence
Occurs without the gain,
That was promised verily
As part of the bargain,

It is as if one has been
Cheated by life itself;
Or as if one, foolishly,
Has burnt one’s boat oneself.

Yes, love is a bargain that
Is struck between two hearts,
To feel for each other when
The game of Cupid starts.

Alas, the rules of the game
Are not always followed.
Sometimes when the young fish swim,
By sharks are they swallowed.


• Written in abcb 7-6-7-6 format


M C Gupta
20 October 2005