Charles Harpur’s love sonnets to Rosa are a model for all love sonnets. Using the style and structure of a Harpur sonnet, write a love sonnet to your own beloved! Can you create images as fiery as his!

The sea of self-hatred, it floods and pulls you in

As we fold ourselves away on the higher shelf

Taught to love others, but how, when we can’t love ourselves?

To rot in self-hate and to shed our own skin

If God saw how we treated ourselves, well she’d call it a sin.

The most difficult confession I have ever made

Was standing in front of the bathroom mirror, telling myself that I had to change

The sea gets deeper, the thoughts grow louder, but you also get stronger

And I hope that one day, you no longer view your body as a gaol cell, but instead

A radiant sunny garden with daises that thrive

Burn away the thoughts that cause you dread

And be effervescently happy in simply being alive

I love the sound of vulnerability reminding me that

If winter has the courage to turn into spring, who says I can’t bloom just the same?

https://tenor.com/view/self-love-yourself-gif-7646184