Castle Walls
She ventured out from her castle walls
In hopes of meeting me,
I said: ‘we’ll flee to the furthest shores,
We’ll run to the far countree,
We’ll sit in bliss on a grassy slope
To see our love returned; ’
I looked again at the moat and saw
That all the boats were burned.
‘How shall I leave my castle walls
And all that keeps me free,
I fear the step that you wish to take
Could spell the end for me,
I wish to come, if I only dared, ’
She said in a sad reply,
The moat was still and the air was chill
And the moon was riding high.
I stood alone by the castle moat
As she turned to seek the warm;
‘The roads of life are a trap, ’ I cried,
‘But so is a thunderstorm,
So are the walls of a castle when
The mortar turns to dust,
So are the bolts on a castle gate
When the hinges start to rust.’
‘You weary me, I must be free, ’
The tower echoed, black,
‘As free as the castle walls allow, ’
I called in sadness back.
‘It’s not too late for the grassy slope
To see our love returned -’
I looked again at the moat and saw
That all the boats were burned.
12 July 1973
poem by David Lewis Paget
Added by Poetry Lover
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