forty winters
rodney crowell
surround you like a beauty mark
and the flesh of your cheekbones
there was ice on the ground
and the girl in the greenhouse said
forty winters straight in line
were you not my valentine?
orange blossoms and sandal woods
will fragrance your senses
an oaten meal by candle light
why can't i break the spell
shake you and make you well?
that keeps you from finding me?
you haven't gone somewhere
that god only knows about
i won't let you drown in the mist
could not age you one short year
it's like i'm trapped beneath the bell jar
and i'm running to reach you
i'll bathe you and feed you
and i'll tend to your grace
but don't make me leave you
i'm drunk on the bitterness
and i'll love you forever