Forbidden Love

O hush, thou darkling night, thy secret keep,

For in thy shroud our trembling souls confide;

The world is stern, its judgment cold and deep,

Yet love, sweet love, will not be set.

 

Thy hand in mine, though shadows round us press,

Doth warm the void where fear would find its rest;

What sin, save tenderness, could hearts confess,

When thine beats faithful in my fervent breast?

 

O cruel fate, that brands our bond with shame,

Yet crowns its sorrow with a nobler fire;

Though lips be silent, still thine own I name,

My life, my soul, my one forbidden desire.

About this poem.

I was asked to write a poem that could be turned into a choral piece. I decided to do it in the style of Arthur Sullivan, one of my favourite composers, who has some wonderful poetry that has been turned into choral pieces. As unrequited or forbidden love is often a common theme in poetry I thought I’d go down that route.