“The Color of You”

Before you, there were no colors in my sky.

No story written, no reason why.

The world turned cold,

the days stood still,

I spoke in whispers,

but felt no will.

Before you, I walked without a song.

Carrying a heart that beat all wrong.

The light had left,

my dreams were few,

I was half a soul,

until you.

Then came your voice,

your tender flame,

You called my heart

and spoke my name.

You taught me how to breathe again,

To trust,

to hope,

to love the pain.

*I was inspired to write this poem after listening to the song “Avant toi” (“Before you”) by Vitaa and Slimane.

“When Trust Fades”

She enters his life not to love,
but to wound,
to misuse his heart,
to teach him the ache of regret.

He gives everything:
his loyalty,
his strength,
his sacrifice,
loving without conditions,
without limits.

Yet in return for devotion,
he receives betrayal.
In place of gratitude,
he meets only disrespect.
His kindness,
once offered as a gift,
is mistaken for weakness.

Slowly, trust fades.
Love turns cold,
not because it was ever false,
but because it was broken
in careless hands.

Now he stands, unsure
whether his heart
will ever dare to love again.

Poetry Reading Part 2: From “Poems of the Heart”

Poetry Reading from “Poems of the Heart”

“Poems of the Heart: A Journey Through Love, Longing, and the Soul’s Memory”

It should be evident to many of you that I (“Doctor Lou”) enjoy writing, reading, and sharing my ideas in public. Writing is one of the personal and intimate activities that energizes my thinking-process, and I often take refuge in writing and researching. For me, the art of writing is a safe place, a mental sanctuary.

I am pleased to share that my second poetry book is about to be dropped in December. In the past three years, I have written a series of “love poems,” which I occasionally shared on here, my personal page. Now, I have collected a series of 51 poems in a book form for my personal enjoyment and yours as well—if you have any interest in literature, especially in poetry.

The title of this collection is “Poems of the Heart: A Journey Through Love, Longing, and the Soul’s Memory,” and I’d like to share furthermore three items with you from this coming book: the book cover, the preface, the table of contents. At the moment, the book can be ordered on Amazon, and soon it will be available on any online bookstore.

Take up and read! 📕 🖊️ ✍️

Preface

I do not claim the title of “professional” poet, yet I am drawn to the art of transforming thought into language and words that linger, words that move, words that awaken the heart. Poetry, for me, is an exploration, an adventure of the human soul, and the meeting of the thought-process, and deep emotions. I interpret poetry as a dance with meaning, a way to play with sound, rhythm, and nuance, and a way to touch the emotional landscapes of the human soul, body, and heart.

It appears to me that love poems, in particular, hold a unique power—one that could be both transformative and cathartic. They do more than express emotion, they ignite it. They invite reflection on the transformative nature of love, the ways it deepens our connections, and the ways it can reshape our hearts and minds. A love poem is a bridge to the soul, a subtle reminder that emotion and reason, tenderness and strength, can coexist in a world that often demands one at the expense of the other.

The poems in this collection, “Poems of the Heart: A Journey Through Love, Longing, and the Soul’s Memory,” are my journey made tangible. These poems deal with a variety of topics, including healing, return, memory, loss, fracture, passion, connection, and longing. These poems are the echoes of my thoughts, the rehearsal of my imagination, and the pursuit of understanding what love truly is. In this collection, I attempt to write about love itself, and its challenges, its desires, its healing power. It is not an exaggeration to construe love as resistance and rebellion in a world that profits from human pain and vulnerability. To love is to forgive without losing yourself, to remain tender without sacrificing strength, to honor both the beloved and the shared humanity that binds us all.

Love is not weakness. Love is compassion refined into power. Love is wisdom shaped by care. It reminds us that softness and strength are not opposites, but companions. These poems are an invitation to feel, to reflect, to dream, and to discover a new way of being in the world through the transformative lens of love.

Furthermore, I believe that the only enduring antidote to human violence and hatred in the world is love, and it has always been love. Love, the highest of human virtues, transcends cycles of violence, isolation, oppression, and human degradation. For this reason, if the laws and policies of nations are not framed within an ethic of care and love, they cannot serve the common good nor foster human flourishing in society. True peace demands not only the absence of war, but the active presence of justice, empathy, compassion, and love embedded in both personal relations and national institutions.

The command to love one’s enemy remains the purest expression of peace, friendship, and reconciliation. To treat one’s enemy as oneself is to embrace the very possibility of living harmoniously and peacefully within community and society. When we become stewards of love, we are transformed into peacemakers and builders of a more just and compassionate world.

Our society has scorned the power of love and its significance for human and political relationships. Too often, love (even romantic or sentimental love) is mocked as weakness, stripped of courage, and dismissed as lacking the strength to confront injustice and oppression. In reality, this is the very opposite of love’s true nature and purpose in the human experience, especially between lovers and friends. Love requires profound strength and moral courage. In other words, love is the greatest courage, the fiercest strength, and the truest power.

Others regard love merely as an abstract idea, rather than a lived practice that should guide our relationships, interactions, and engagements. Romantic love has this very meaning; it is a way of being in the world, and it is way of being with someone you care, support, inspire, and empower. Love is more than human sentiment. What we need is to reclaim love as a habit (not as a theory), as truth (not as weakness), a daily discipline, and moral conscience shaping all human activity and practice. Love is a way of life and guiding force of every relationship and human encounter.

Love alone causes human relations to flourish. Love alone upholds human dignity, making it the foundation of any lasting peace and communal living. Love alone is the healing path to restore broken relationships and to set people free. Love alone is the conscience of our world and the true light of democracy and politics.

May this collection of 51 love poems meet you exactly where you are, nourish your sentimental and romantic journey, and gently guide you toward the person you are becoming in this sacred adventure we call love.

“Sunlight on Your Skin”

I drew a sun of light to breathe life back into our love.
I painted the sky with the eternal colors of your passion: violet, black, and yellow.
I sketched a garden of flowers to remind us of our first kiss.
I dropped a bucket of lilies into the ocean, creating a new scent for you.
I remodeled the room where our bodies first met,
the sacred place of our first embrace.

I bought a round-trip ticket to the country you always dreamed of visiting.
I brought you 365 roses to honor the day I first laid my eyes on you.

Every act of devotion speaks
of a love that was never common,
a love that refuses to vanish.
Each gesture, every thought,
is proof that our love was unbroken.
If these memories are all we have left,
then let them be beautiful enough to carry us through the years.

Even after the absence,
the betrayal,
the silence,
my heart still chooses you,
hoping our love could find its way back home,
to the place where you and I first learned how to dream.

“The Hours You Left Behind”

Another night collapsed beneath me without rest.
I wandered through the landscape of a dream,
searching for you,
but you drifted from my reach,
my touch,
a warm presence fading
like heat slipping from a pillow at dawn.

I woke in the dark,
my fingers already reaching for the phone.
A poem spilled out of me,
a map of my insomnia,
and for a moment
I thought of sending it to you.
Then I laid the phone down,
and let the message die quietly in my hands.

Your silence has grown its own shape:
a distance wide enough
to swallow my affection,
my voice,
my longing,
my presence.
You stepped away from the man
who promised you peace,
who admired the softness of your smile,
who cherished the simple grace
of holding your hand
and sitting beside you
just to be near.

These sleepless nights don’t disappear;
they multiply,
echoing through the hours,
turning into dark memories,
gathering like shadows
that refuse to be still.
They are nights without your warmth,
moments emptied of you,
hours hollow as winter rooms,
waiting for the sound
of your voice
that never comes.

*Last night, I went to bed with a terrible headache, couldn’t sleep through the night. Still fighting my insomnia.
It never leaves me alone even for a moment.
When I woke up in the morning, my head was still pounding. A poem was born out of me at dawn, and I named it “The Hours You Left Behind.”

“Burning Love”

The moment your voice falls softly
against my ear,
I stare at you without a word,
yet my heart longs to speak:
Words of love, immense as the sky.
That passion burns
deep inside me,
only for you.

I have wandered, searching for you
through shadows, through silence,
through old memories.
Wherever you are…
You, my azure flame,
my secret passion,
my hidden love,
hear the trembling of my voice.
Your name is the reason it shakes.

And I weep…
You walk away,
And I remain,
Alone with this fire.
Yes, I cried in my sleep
until sunset.
As though love, in all its wildness,
had tried to scare me away…
yet could not keep me
from burning for you.

This love, so wild, so pure,
the only feeling I have ever known…
a love so beautiful…
you never even recognized
its light.
It made my heart stronger,
in the very place where love once broke it.
Yet still,
you vanished before my heart could speak.

“If Only We Remain”

If the world were ending tomorrow,
all I would have is you.
I’ve got nothing left to lose;
you’re the only feeling that still makes sense
before everything collapses.
You’re the one reason I don’t want the world to end,
even though our love could outlast the chaos.

Tell me:
would you still love me
if it were only you and I,
two shadows wandering
through the hush after humanity fades?
Would your heart still choose mine
if every other love
collapsed into silence?

If the heavens cracked open,
the stars dim
and pour themselves into the night,
the moon surrenders its light
to the waiting dark,
would you take my hand
and escape with me
into another world?
When love turns sorrow-blue
and the map of joy makes no sense,
will you still walk beside me?

With you, I find comfort,
and hope.
With me, I want you to find
a place to trust again.
We are the promise that survives
after the sun gives its last breath of light.
Our love will outlive a dying world.

Know this:
what we create together
is beautiful,
will stand,
sturdy as morning,
gentle as dusk,
faithful against every ending.

Promise me you won’t let go.
Promise you’ll stay,
even after the last echo
of the world disappears.