When Your Face Came Rising by Yevgeny Yevtushenko
When your face came rising
above my crumpled life,
the only thing I understood at first
was how meager were all my possessions.
But your face cast a peculiar glow
on forests, seas, and rivers,
initiating into the colors of the world
uninitiated me.
I'm so afraid, I'm so afraid,
the unexpected dawn might end
ending the discoveries, tears, and raptures,
but I refuse to fight this fear.
This fear-I understand-
is love itself. I cherish this fear,
not knowing how to cherish,
I, careless guardian of my love.
This fear has ringed me tightly.
These moments are so brief, I know,
and for me the colors will disappear
when once your face has set.
When Doug and I were first dating, he made a point of showing me this poem. I assumed it was my face which cast a glow upon his crumpled life and, naturally, I fell in love with him. Now we've been married 33-plus years and I'm suddenly realizing it wasn't about me, except that he loved it and he wanted to share it with me and I guess that's just as good as having a glowing face.
(In celebration of National Poetry Month, I am sharing a poem each day this month.)