A Kiss Is Bitter-Sweet Poem by Patrick William Kavanagh

A kiss is bitter-sweet.
Lips touching,
tender feelings, hearts that miss a beat,
But underneath the chasm waits,
As lovers meet.

Eyes are reaching out to eyes.
Like combatants, the lovers face across the void,
Fear steps into the circle of our need,
hesitation marrs the need,
As lovers meet.

But when that fear of gain has passed,
There comes instead,
the fear of loss that spins and spins inside our heads.
Misery has joined the queue,
As lovers meet.

The endless trivialities of daily life,
the wants and needs of family and friends,
press heavily on the partner, lover, wife.
As soon as it begins, the journey starts to end,
As lovers meet.

Misconceptions, warped perceptions, cultures clash.
The embryonic pains begin to grow.
Disenchantment creeps beneath the door,
and life begins to look just as it did before,
As lovers meet.

Choose!
Either walk away
or be determined that you both will find a way.
Happiness or misery
have equal say,
As Lovers meet.