Fresh Rose

      "Fresh rose, fresh rose,
Most fair and loving,
When I had you in my arms
I did not know how to serve you,
And now when I would have you
I cannot serve you, no."
"You are to blame for that, friend,
You, and not me, no.
You sent a letter to me
Through a servant of yours
Who never gave it to me
But told me a different story:
He said you were married, friend,
There in the lands of Leon,
And had a wife of great beauty
And children like a flower."
"Whoever told you that, lady,
Did not tell you the truth, no,
For I never set foot in Castile,
Nor there in the lands of Leon,
Except when I was little
And knew nothing of love."

Copyright © 2008 W.S. Merwin All rights reserved
from Spanish Ballads
Copper Canyon Press
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission