It’s often said that every poem is a love poem. I think there’s a lot of truth to this, probably because the word “love” encompasses so much. Today’s Poetic Asides prompt asked for a love or anti-love poem. The first thing that came to my mind was this (overly) sentimental memory of my first daughter’s birth.

A Photo I Wish I Had

My husband’s profile, the strong jaw

as he held my hand,

held me to the moment,

of our daughter’s reluctant arrival

into our brighter world.

To me, the best love poems are nuanced with the bittersweet. I think the poem “Adolescence” by P.K. Page captures new love and innocence so well, and the shift to a more mature love, which is usually less than perfect.