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A Lament for Lost Youth and Love

I mourn for the death of my erstwhile youth,
a time of innocence and naive bliss
which hid from me life's dark, unpleasant truth,
but now holds all the pleasures that I miss;

a time of handsome beauty, brawn, and thews,
as of a Greek god in his peerless prime,
like Heracles of fabled strength, sinews,
and might that's of renown from mythic time.

But, O Desire!...how do I most long for
your renewal of my now lovelorn life
for me with the young virgins of folklore,
whose maidenhead only can quench this strife!

Now in the fall of my increasing years,
I have lost youth, and love, as old age nears.

Sonnet by Ngoc Nguyen