18 Poems About Love for Valentine's Day

Love is complex, sometimes confusing, sometimes overwhelming, sometimes painful, and yet sometimes it's all you need. Here is a collection of poems I've written about breakups and makeups; poems for when you find love and poems for when you lose it.

Fireworks blaze through the sky

In blossoms of red and green

Hanging for a small eternity

Then dissipating into summer heat

You touch my hand and my heart bursts

Lighting me up with your brilliance

The lake shines with deep blue brilliance

Reflecting perfection in the cloudless sky

I am slightly afraid the swan boat will burst

And tip over, your eyes that mischievous green

That fills my body with such heat

I could meet your eyes for an eternity

We’ve waited in line for an eternity

Sunlight glints off my lap bar in brilliance

The metal striking my hands with heat

Slowly the coaster rachets toward the sky

I can’t see grass anymore, just green

And we are flying, a joyful screaming burst

Your hands tickle me in a sudden burst

I will be laughing for eternity

In my favorite shirt, emerald green

Like your eyes. In your brilliance

You lift me up into the sky

My cheeks blazing with heat

Seeking to escape the summer heat

I tiptoe into the water, but you burst

In, shooting raindrops back to the sky

The ocean stretches out to eternity

Water sparkling in deep blue brilliance

Fading outwards to soft sea green

You guide the ball effortlessly on the green

Hands wrapping around my club, comforting heat

Passing on some of your mini-golf brilliance

The ball rolls straight in a sudden burst

It hovers over the hole for a small eternity

Then falls as we raise our hands to the sky

We are a burst of joy, a swift jet of green

I will bask in your heat for all eternity

My warm flash of brilliance guiding me through the night sky

The night is
bathed in darkest blue
flooding her
with its scent
of orchids opening their
petals to the moon

His hair is
bathed in golden sand
flooding her
with the sound
of the ocean breeze soaring
over lonely dunes

His eyes are
bathed in dark meanings
flooding her
with the sight
of rose petals, tangled sheets
in a shadowed room

His hands are
bathed in calluses
flooding her
with a touch
of magic, holding her gently
in careful cocoon

This time is
bathed in lonely gray
flooding her
with the taste
of bittersweet departure
Goodbyes burn the spoon

Her eyes are
bathed in streetlight's gleam
flooding her
with the sight
of him, leaving her tonight
Will she see him soon?

Early summer day

Farmer’s market bustling with people

His hand squeezes lightly around mine

Unhurried, traversing the aisles

I ramble nervously, but I’m comforted by

The scent of flowers I know so well

My words snake out

Growing like vines

On a trellis from my childhood

Intertwining fate into his

We stop by a strawberry stand

I hand him a strawberry

Luscious and vivid as a rose

And the old man proclaims we are

It’s rising to his lips, those lips are

Sweet

Shall I compare thee to a bitter winter’s night?

For you have thrust me out into the cold

Shrinking, compressing into a grieving huddle

Waiting for the wolves to come

I break off a twig, small and stillborn in my hands

Trying and failing to mimic her warmth

My silent scream is reflected by ice

My footprints permeated by snow

Her flame is magnetic to you

Smoke and mirrors lull you into a trance

The heat she generates is brand new lava

While my crust has subsided and cooled

She can burn for you instead

I will find a better match

I'll never hold those hands again

I'll never see those eyes again

I'll never hear your voice again

You'll never hurt my heart again

I'll never see those eyes again

Staring at another girl

You'll never hurt my heart again

I'll never leave my soul unfurled

Staring at another girl

I wish I were more like her

I'll never leave my soul unfurled

Not even a sound, not even a stir

I wish I were more like her

Pretty and bright and enough for you

Not even a sound, not even a stir

I fade away, forever out of view

I am an astronaut, please come find me

I’m looking for a star to guide me

A sun to warm my frozen heart

I just need a little light to start

I am an astronaut, how far I roam

I’m looking for someplace like home

A transient drifting from planet to planet

Every time I thought I’d entered I was banished

I am an astronaut on the edge of a knife

I’m looking through this universe for any sign of life

Floating through this void so empty and stark

I’m out of my depth when I wander through the dark

I am an astronaut and I’m losing this race

To search for love is to be lost in space

To love is to sail

Beneath moonlight so pale

For the stars are fleeting

Our journey is a labyrinth

Will we be meeting

Guarded by shadows

Creeping through meadows

Our journey is a labyrinth

Afraid to be found

Clasped together, bound

These black and white fingers

Our journey is a labyrinth

Taboo kiss lingers

Hangs under the tree

Now at last we are free

Our journey is a labyrinth

One night the moon said to herself

I am beautiful and bright but have no legacy

To watch the world when I wane

So she floated down to earth

Draped in a shimmering silvery dress

Soon she carried the son of a storm cloud

Tearfully she laid him down in a mortal fishing village

She could not hold him in her airless arms

But she could watch him every night as he slept

The years passed and boy became man

He sought adventure and intrigue on the high seas

As others could only dream of

But during his travels he met a young woman

More beautiful than even the moon his mother

And his immortal heart was no longer his own

His father the lord of storms was furious

An immortal could never fall in love with a human

No matter the increment law conquers all

So with great heaviness he sent a mighty tempest

To reap the son he cherished and his wide-eyed love

Duty must triumph over the heart

His mother the moon took pity on the lovers

Her son she took to stay with her

He became the man in the moon

His love became the sea foam

Still they struggle against their bonds

Every night and noon at tide

Never to meet again

But fighting desperately against their fate

He smiles down sadly at her every night

And she can smile back briefly

Before she breaks against the shore

It all began at a village dance

Their eyes met, and love took its chance

Tall Ohi’a, strong with a handsome face

Sweet Lehua, with her gentle grace

He a warrior, athletic and lithe

She a beauty, bright and blithe

Her father protective, but fond of romance

Ohi’a looking over from his conversation

Lehua’s cherry blush in fire’s illumination

He turns to her father with stammers and stutters

The old man was amused to see the warrior aflutter

So he offered to introduce the pair

And Ohi’a sprung to his feet, raced to where

Lehua stood, glowing in her anticipation

Soon the two were bound in matrimony

Always together, they would never be lonely

Her loving father cried as he gave her away

He’d built the couple a home in which to stay

Blossoming proudly with passion and zeal

They had so much joy it seemed almost unreal

And for a while, they lived by love’s sustenance only

But one day Pele, the lady of fire

Spotted Ohi’a and made known her desire

Ohi’a kept chopping wood, refusing politely

He wouldn’t give in, and Pele blazed brightly

She had to have Ohi’a all to herself

But who could be more perfect than herself?

And then walked in the one he truly admired

When Lehua came over, his eyes filled with love

Pele was reeling like she’d just been shoved

So she raised her arms and became

A shimmering vengeful column of flame

She twisted and burned his once soft golden skin

Then covered him with ash and sealed his soul within

A tree, then she fled to the heights above

Now widowed, sweet Lehua begged and wept

For Pele to return her husband who slept

The gods were furious with Pele-who-torches-the-earth

So they made her an offer of bittersweet rebirth

She could rest upon Ohi’a’s bower

And be his gorgeous crimson flower

With tears in her eyes she knelt down to accept

Scarlet blossom and scar-cloaked tree

Entwined together in the lee

If the flowers stay where they bloom

Sunlight clears away the gloom

But if the blossom is plucked away

Heavy rain will fall for days

When torn from her love, she cannot bear to be

No matter how much

Sand is in the hourglass

Love to the last grain

It’s foggy

Where are we going?

Driven to

Dead end streets

Separated by traffic

Surrounded by lies

I have a dream, a dream of my own

Someday I’m going to own a nice home

A place where I can experience peace

A hidden place where all my troubles will cease

A place where I can spend days with my friends

I want this dream to never end

Recently me and you came to an end

I’d wanted you all for my own

I’m so tired of this fighting between friends

When once talking to all of you felt like home

Lay down your weapons, this war must cease

The only thing I dream of now is peace

The morning is quiet and radiates peace

I lie here and dream about the end

Of the painful, haunting way we ceased

To be anything, and now I’m on my own

Wishing my regrets could have a home

Wishing they were acknowledged by my friends

All I dreamed about was having friends

And between those friends, there’d be peace

Together, we would feel at home

Our bond would never have to end

If I went back to you, I’d be going on my own

And all of those friendships I treasured would cease

I suppose that these feelings will have to cease

Give up the dream of us all being friends

I’ve got to let you grow on your own

If I ever want you to know peace

But in the back of my mind I hope this isn’t the end

Because in my heart I think everyone deserves a home

When I first talked to you it felt like home

A place where all of my troubles could cease

I know your anger and rage needs to end

Before I can even consider you a friend

I dream of a world in which we can find peace

Even if we both have to find it on our own

Someday I dream I will own my own home

Where love will never end and everyone can be my friend

Where war will cease and we will only know peace

Once I was a tree,

And you were my lumberjack.

Every day you’d cut me down,

And every night I’d crawl right back.

We grew twisted together.

We unraveled apart.

We don’t belong together

If your words cut through my heart.

You were my downfall, you drove me insane.

I thought you were all that I had to my name.

But in truth I was the canopy

That kept you safe from the rain.

You’re not all evil and you’re not all good,

But I am worth more than these splinters of wood.

You were my love, my very best friend.

If you can’t respect me, then all that must end.

Every word that you say tries to make me feel small.

But I am a tree and I must stand tall.

I am a tree that needs freedom to grow.

I am a tree. I can stand on my own.

You once told me we were knights

I can't be your shield forever and you can't be mine

Do we have the might to keep up this fight?

You once told me we had to unite

Against the evil sorcerer and his every evil line

You once told me we were knights

We have to uphold the banners of the light

He hurt us, can we let it go and say that's fine?

Do we have the might to keep up this fight?

We all used to be on one side and everything was alright

But then he captured me and tried to extinguish my shine

You once told me we were knights

Remember he's a sorcerer, his hands filled with sleights

No matter what you do, he will try to undermine

Do we have the might to keep up this fight?

I understand why you missed him last night

Because once I was his and he was mine

You once told me we were knights

Do we have the might to keep up this fight?

Camping beneath a star-scattered sky

Beneath ashes slowly waltzing, falling

Between us the fire shoots off sparks

In a pulsing rhythm, a lingering touch

We can't go to sleep, not yet

Carefully the pieces are falling

Into perfect flames and a moonlit sky

But we don't see them, not yet

Somehow I'm drawn to your touch

Your electric blue eyes are giving off sparks

So close we can almost touch

Closer and closer fall the sparks

We are interrupted, and the touch

Doesn't happen, not quite yet

And the star haven't aligned in the sky

The excitement fades, our faces falling

Not that moment, not yet

But quietly your hand reaches out to touch

Renewing and igniting the sparks

And I feel like I am falling

Into the star-scattered sky

I reach for your hand

Moment of uncertainty

You reciprocate

Your eyes are my calm blue ocean

You are my eye in the storm

I am perpetually in motion

But you anchor me and keep me warm

We've weathered these winds together

You can survive the pouring rain

I want you to be happy forever

Standing tall against fear and pain

You are beautiful, deep as the sea

But I don't think you can see it

I want our love to set you free

I'll be here when you need it

You are my calm blue ocean

And you keep my heart in motion

A brick you carry with you from the past

There it weighs heavy on you like a stone

Could there be someone

Holding out her gentle hands

To lighten my load

Your eyes cannot hide pain, I see right through

Afraid, you hide behind a wall of stone

Her hands chip away

Wiping off dust and the years

Breaking through diamond

Your face is hard, a mask so grim and cold

A dance with me will melt your heart of stone

Waltzing on marble

A whirl of new emotions

Becoming music

She grins at him and waits for him to frown

But then there is a smile embossed in stone

Unexpected change

I need to tell you something

About forever

He takes her hand and gets down on his knees

So lovely on her finger is his stone