III.
Si me dejas pensarte en los rincones de la noche,
Si me dejas tenerte en los rincones de mi mente,
Si me dejas probar tus labios ardientes,
Si me dejas escuchar tus ideas oscuras,
Si me dejas contar las pecas en tu piel,
Si me dejas pensar que seremos siempre fiel,
Si me dejas tocarte cuando se me antoje,
Si me dejas gritarte mis tontas emociones,
Si me dejas protegerte de peligros y lastimas,
Si me dejas ayudarte con cosas que ni sé,
Si me dejas abrazarte cuando mi alma esté fría,
Si me dejas sostener tu mano y pensar que es sola mia,
Si me dejas imaginarnos un futuro entero,
Si me dejas estar contigo mientras desafío a mis miedos,
Si me dejas todo esto y tal vez un poco mas,
Si me dejas estar aqui, yo no me iré jamás.
-Melisa Im
III. [Translation]
If you let me think of you in the corners of the night,
If you let me taste your ardent lips,
If you let me listen to your dark thoughts,
If you let me count the freckles on your skin,
If you let me think that we’ll always be faithful,
If you let me touch you whenever I want,
If you let me yell at you my stupid feelings,
If you let me protect you from danger and wounds,
If you let me help you with things I don’t even know,
If you let me hug you when my soul is cold,
If you let me hold your hand and think it’s only mine,
If you let me imagine a whole future for us,
If you let me stay with you while I face my fears,
If you let me have all of this and maybe a little more,
If you let me stay here, I will never leave.
-Melisa Im
[Image: “forever” protected by a Creative Commons license belonging to Steve McFarland]
This poem was inspired by the notion that falling in love is not something that just happens to us, but something we actively strive for. Here are a list of questions featured in the NY Times to fall in love with a stranger: CLICK HERE
Illustrated by Meli 