Amor ante omnia

He gave her a rose,

a rose so beautiful, it captured the eye of all,

and all were so green, they began to brawl

but she kept it safe, kept it close

For love does not envy

Her heart sang tunes of joy,

her happiness filling the room to the brim,

and the rose’s light never did dim,

and it was all because of her boy,

Love is kind

But as the months passed,

the boy grew bored and her tunes grew silent,

had he got bored so quick and then the silence got violent,

and the rose petals began to wilt just as fast

Love is patient

And every night after, the boy would crawl into bed,

with his eyes shining with apologies, giving her new toys,

hoping to offer her his own decoy,

had he not meant all he said,

Love is not self-seeking

Her boy, her love, was drunk, filled with wrath

his screams echoing off the walls, his hands flying and bruising,

the rose’s stem blackening, what’s the use of abusing…

abusing the only one who stayed along his path

Love is not easily angered

She had always been by his side,

when others had mocked and when he had ignored,

maybe, she thought, he got bored,

but wasn’t he supposed to be here, to hold his bride

Love always protects

It’s when the final petal on the rose is wilting and falling,

that she finally finds the need to speak,

she will no longer stay quiet and meek,

she was through with all the name calling

Love is not rude

She grabbed her rose and ran to the boy,

keeping her head held high,

never letting him see her cry,

she would no longer let him take her joy,

Love does not delight in evil

And when she said her final goodbyes

the rose began to bloom,

its petals and stem, no longer be weighed by all the gloom,

she was worth more than he could provide

Love always prevails

For love does not have to be what they say,

full of heady touches and fiery passions,

only giving the other small rations,

Love can be for oneself and in more than one way,

Love never fails