Poetry Day - Joys that Sting

I was going to give you another of CS Lewis’s poems written of his search after desire, but it’s all a bit tormented, with “holy monsters” and “long-haunted men” and so forth, so instead I thought I’d give you something less troubled and internal, though not quite in the land of sunshine and happiness, called Joys That Sting. Remember the line from Shadowlands where Joy says "the pain then is part of the happiness now" ...

Joys That Sting

"Oh doe not die," says Donne, "for I shall hate

All women so." How false this sentence rings.

Women? But in a life made desolate

It is the joys once shared that have the stings.

To take the old walks alone, or not at all,

To order one pint where I ordered two,

To think of, and then not make, the small

Time-honoured joke (senseless to all but you);

To laugh (oh, one'll laugh), to talk upon

Themes that we talked upon when you were there,

To make some poor pretence of going on,

Be kind to one's old friends, and seem to care,

While no one (O God) through the years will say

The simplest, common word in just your way.

CS Lewis

Picture from: http://www.lifehack.org/wp-content/files/2007/12/20071224-walking-alone-in-the-snow.png