Background
We have lamented the fact that the inventory of our English -American language, has an ample supply of words, relating to commerce (invoices and bill heads), and yet, there has, eternally, existed a shortfall, in the language of sentiment (“feeling words”). This limitation in potential, for the meaningful expression of emotion and emphasis, has, unhappily, been further challenged by the popular elective use of electronic communication.
A recent conversation with one of the loyal followers of this blog space prompted this poem’s re-publication –p.
WHEN WORDS FAIL
Can one describe a chocolate’s taste
Or find soft words for a baby’s smile
Can words tell honey’s sweet bouquet
Or express relief and rest a while
Can one recount a rainbow’s arch
With words that bring to view its sight
Or portray the shadows of the Moon
And thus, it’s real pale cold light
Are there apt words that sob relief
When the lost toddler is tearfully found
That describe the lilac’s inebriate scent
The Ocean’s waves full basso pound
Is there a word for the brush of lips
On newborn’s cool and silken brow
The splatting sound as dripping rain,
Strikes the verdant leaves and boughs
Can one describe a roses’ red
The weathered hue of old windmills
Tell me, please, where such words go
With so many heartfelt thoughts to fill
One need not fret nor search in vain
When it seems, words do not serve
The sentiment’s so well conveyed,
Most times, a small tear will do.
Leonard N, Shapiro (2019)
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