Love Among the Ruins

Because of love I kiss the ugly
Because of love I kiss the ugly.
I found hope among the ruins
I found hope among the ruins.
I kiss because the hope of love
I found among the ugly ruins.

The hidden diamonds gleam
The hidden diamonds gleam
Of joy in a secret dream
Of joy in a secret dream
The secret joy of diamonds,
Dream hidden in a gleam.

Lucky star, finders keepers,
Lucky star, finders keepers,
Dance of life is free and real.
Dance of life is free and real.
Life finders real keepers
Stardance is lucky and free.

Gleam of hope is a secret
Because the ugly finders dance.
Star keepers dream of joy,
I kiss in love, lucky and real.
Diamonds among ruins hidden,
I found the life of the free.

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The Poem above is a paradelle.

Paradelle is supposedly an eleventh century French form.

In poet Billy Collins' words, a paradelle is:

""The paradelle is one of the more demanding French fixed forms, first appearing in the langue d'oc love poetry of the eleventh century. It is a poem of four six-line stanzas in which the first and second lines, as well as the third and fourth lines of the first three stanzas, must be identical. The fifth and sixth lines, which traditionally resolve these stanzas, must use all the words from the preceding lines and only those words. Similarly, the final stanza must use every word from all the preceding stanzas and only these words."