Conversation between Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Pablo Neruda taking inspiration from the poems “ How do I love thee? “ and “ I do not love you…” Sonnet 16. I have used a quote or two from the poems. It’s a very humble attempt

 

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

 

“How much do I love him? Here are the ways;

To the empyrean heights where skies end,

In the realms far where our souls transcend,

With tender warmth as the dawn’s sun rays,

Counting moments with him, counting my grays,

Deep down the valleys where rainbows extend,

Under the ebony sky that’s curtained,

With freedom,with faith I’ll love him always.

With passion and glory and sans pretense,

Counting my blessings when we’re together,

Loving him wholly with feelings immense,

My love will flow like a gentle river,

Even after death and in a life hence,

If the heavens wish in lives forever.”

 

Pablo Neruda

 

“I don’t love her like the things that can be perceived,

Not by the rainbows, stars or shapes believed,

Not like a ruby, diamond or stones precious,

Nor like the vibrant roses that bloom with glory,

I loved as certain dark things are to be loved,

in secret, between the shadow and the soul.

In between the looming silhouettes,

In periods of twilight,in the phases in between,

Beneath the swaying willows where my songs were unheard,

In the crevices of my heart where things go unseen,

My love for her exists wafting fragrance,

While you, Emily, love him in the brightness of day,

I love, my love, in quietness and in ways intimate.”

 

***

The first one by Browning, I tried to make it a 𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝘁 as far as the syllables and rhymes go. But iambs I haven’t adhered. Will probably edit later when I find time.

The second one by Neruda – free verse