At the corner of the booth, wiping away mascara in front of a cascading mountain of makeup, sat the most intriguing woman I had ever met. Rosaline was sharp, bold, and charismatic. Her remarkable ability to say the most insanely inappropriate things at the most awkward moments earned her title as my second skin.Before I stood to lose all my courage, I cleared my throat to ask the question that had been burning in the back of my mind ever since the spotlight shifted onto Juliet. “Are you happy being denied in the tale that was rightfully meant to have your name in bold?” Her eyes gleamed knowingly, as if picking up on the words I dared not think for fear of them coming true.Can anyone be happy as a ‘Rosaline’? Can you be happy as the woman who almost got it all?I knew that feeling all too well: almost having the boy, almost having the spotlight in your own rightful story. The feeling hit home. They say I am witty and smart. They tell me what they tell her, that we are the suns. Yet why does the story still have Juliet in bold? Why is it still Juliet?I bet she despises the silent tirade, having the audience look at her pitiful plight and wonder why she wasn't enough. “But my name isn't Juliet. I am Rosalind, a heartbroken but proud woman.” I looked dumbfoundedly into her content smile. Suddenly, I was no longer staring at a weeping figure cursed to be marred with tears of sorrow. A sorrow she no longer had since she stopped trying for a different name tag.This commanding force of a woman refused to bend for the story that all had deemed was her life, tragically wrenched from her hands.Rosaline knew this wasn't her show. ‘Rosaline’ was up next.Without warning, she gets to her feet. “Must I try and wait to be the ‘Juliet’ for someone who isn't my Romeo? Forgotten or not, the story must go on, and mine just happened to be pressed late. Alas, I must go for my show, now now,we can't have Dario waiting.” She winked as I grinned through the realisation that I am a Rosaline(deff always late)and a proud one.
Glinting golden through the trees, Apples of Hesperides! Through the moon-pierced warp of night Shoot pale shafts of yellow light, Swaying to the kissing breeze Swings the treasure, golden-gleaming, Apples of Hesperides! Far and lofty yet they glimmer, Apples of Hesperides! Blinded by their radiant shimmer, Pushing forward just for these; Dew-besprinkled, bramble-marred, Poor duped mortal, travel-scarred, Always thinking soon to seize And possess the golden-glistening Apples of Hesperides! Orbed, and glittering, and pendent, Apples of Hesperides! Not one missing, still transcendent, Clustering like a swarm of bees. Yielding to no man's desire, Glowing with a saffron fire, Splendid, unassailed, the golden Apples of Hesperides!
I can miss you, I can grieve for you, but I don't want to bother you. I can feel you, I can be yours, but I don't want to be a burden to you. I can love you even in silence, but I don't want anyone to drag you down because of me. I can be your strength without being by your side, but I don't want anyone to look down on you just because of me. I can be your ally, even from a distance, but I don't want to be the reason for your downfall. I can live without you, even when it hurts, but I am happy that you are shining without me, because that matters more. I will always choose you as mine, but without letting you know. I can feel sad in your absence, but I don't want you to hurt yourself. I can die a hundred times, but I don't want you to be blamed, nor do I want your family to be blamed, just because I have nothing and no one by my side. I can be your silent cheerleader, but I can't be the reason for your problems. I can hurt myself, knowingly or unknowingly, but I want you to look good and be respected in modern society. I can lose everything over time for you, but I don't want you to lose anything, because you deserve to have it all. I can remain nameless in modern society, but you are the source of everything that still makes me believe in love. That's why I love you, but I let you go.
You've had a day, and bad day it was. But can you compensate for another's day's loss? You may have felt that you lost the opportunity but another may have felt complete disunity. You may have cried over something you couldn't keep, while another hid their tears over something buried deep. You may have cursed the cards that you were dealt, while another wished they could feel what you felt. You call it a disaster, a world that's turned unkind, but someone else's battlefield may be harder to find. So tell me, how bad is bad? Is it the pain that you can see? Or the silent weight that someone carries secretly? For what breaks one person may barely leave a scar, and what seems small to you may be another's hardest war. And perhaps that's the point: Don't measure pain by what is shown. You never know how much another soul has borne.
The sun descending in the West, The evening star does shine; The birds are silent in their nest, And I must seek for mine. The moon, like a flower In heaven’s high bower, With silent delight, Sits and smiles on the night. Farewell, green fields and happy groves, Where flocks have took delight, Where lambs have nibbled, silent moves The feet of angels bright; Unseen, they pour blessing, And joy without ceasing, On each bud and blossom, And each sleeping bosom. They look in every thoughtless nest Where birds are covered warm; They visit caves of every beast, To keep them all from harm: If they see any weeping That should have been sleeping, They pour sleep on their head, And sit down by their bed. When wolves and tigers howl for prey, They pitying stand and weep; Seeking to drive their thirst away, And keep them from the sheep. But, if they rush dreadful, The angels, most heedful, Receive each mild spirit, New worlds to inherit. And there the lion’s ruddy eyes Shall flow with tears of gold: And pitying the tender cries, And walking round the fold: Saying: ‘Wrath by His meekness, And, by His health, sickness, Is driven away From our immortal day. ‘And now beside thee, bleating lamb, I can lie down and sleep, Or think on Him who bore thy name, Graze after thee, and weep. For, washed in life’s river, My bright mane for ever Shall shine like the gold, As I guard o’er the fold.
If you beg, you lose yourself. A hollow echo rattling on a shelf, Trading your spine for a passing nod, Kneeling to mortals as if they were god. If you give up, you lose dignity. Surrendering quietly, willingly, Folding your hands before the bell even rings, Clipped by the shadow of broken wings. If you run, you lose courage. Leaving your blood in the mechanical forage, Choosing the dark and the safety of walls, Fading away as the empire falls. If you cheat, you lose self-respect. A cracked little mirror of your own neglect, Winning a race where the finish is fake, Swallowing water while choking on lake. If you gossip, you lose love. Trading the warmth of the skies above For poison dropped gently from a velvet tongue, A song of betrayal too easily sung. But— If you swim in poison to taste the golden cure, If the hands that reach for it aren't quite pure, If you burn your own name just to light up the game... You’ve lost nothing. You’ve gained fame.
[F---- is, presumably, Mrs. Frances Sargent Osgood] Beloved! amid the earnest woes That crowd around my earthly path-- (Drear path, alas! where grows Not even one lonely rose)-- My soul at least a solace hath In dreams of thee, and therein knows An Eden of bland repose. And thus thy memory is to me Like some enchanted far-off isle In some tumultuous sea-- Some ocean throbbing far and free With storms--but where meanwhile Serenest skies continually Just o'er that one bright island smile.