le chef d'oeuvre de la vie

I—

within

the memories

replayed

I—sat and watched

within my mind's eye

a spectrum of experience

beside my lover, my friend

I—let my mind fly

within my gaze

glorious grandeur

layers enveloped in layers

rich tapestry

dense packed history

shimmery

messy

—

there is magic at sunset, mystery at sunrise, the settling of the manic noise, then dawn's chorus bursts bright with the sound of—life

—

I—took a walk through the joy and sorrow

coucher de soleil magique

within my gaze, within my mind's eye

lever de soleil mystérieux

the memories and the past, technicolour

le refrain de l'aube éclate le son brillant de la vie

replayed at the drive-in, on lover's lane

t'élève au sommet des montagnes

I—sat and watched the good, the bad

within my mind's eye, it caught my gaze

a spectrum of experience, good to bad

beside my lover, my friend for life

I—let my mind fly through the ether

within my gaze, within my mind's eye

glorious in grandeur and the minor

layers enveloped in layers of everything

hope, honesty, love, laughter

sadness, madness, betrayal, arrayal

rich tapestry, a cliched mystery

dense packed history, shimmery, messy

—

there is so much that brings you down, so much that lifts you up, drags you kicking and screaming, raises you to the top of mountains

—

I—took a walk through the joy and sorrow

within my gaze, within my mind's eye

the memories and the past, technicolour

replayed at the drive-in, on lover's lane

I—sat and watched the good, the bad (J'ai fait une promenade à travers la joie et le chagrin)

within my mind's eye, it caught my gaze

a spectrum of experience, good to bad (dans mon regard, dans mon esprit)

beside my lover, my friend for life

I—let my mind fly through the ether

within my gaze, within my mind's eye

glorious in grandeur and the minor

layers enveloped in layers of everything

hope, honesty, love, laughter (J'ai fait une promenade à travers la joie et le chagrin)

sadness, madness, betrayal, arrayal

rich tapestry, a cliched mystery (dans mon regard, dans mon esprit)

dense packed history, shimmery, messy

—

magic sunset coucher de soleil magique

mystery sunrise lever de soleil mystérieux

settling manic noise, dawn's chorus bursts bright sound of—life

le refrain de l'aube éclate le son brillant de la vie brings you down, lifts you up, drags you kicking—screaming, raises you to mountain tops

—

then the singer sings "all these things I've done"

he knows we know

I got soul but I'm not a soldier

then the singer sings-

are we "human" or are we dancer?

-

I—je

within dans

the memories les souvenirs

replayed rejoué

I—sat and watched Je me suis assis et j'ai regardé

within my mind's eye dans les yeux de mon esprit

a spectrum of experience un éventail d'expériences

beside my lover, my friend à côté de mon amant, mon ami

-every little thing she does is magic-turns me on

I—let my mind fly Je laisse mon esprit voler

within my gaze dans mon regard

glorious grandeur grandeur glorieuse

layers enveloped in layers couches enveloppées dans des couches

rich tapestry riche tapisserie

dense packed history une histoire dense et chargée

shimmery chatoyant

messy désordonné

*

Thanks for reading!

Author's Notes: Wanted to do another positive and upbeat piece, but also a bit...offbeat. So there you go. For reference, there are references to two songs by The Killers, "All These Things I've Done" and "Human" and the song by The Police, "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic". The poem was not inspired by the amazing piece by Matisse, but I feel it pairs nicely with it.