From “Love Poem”
by Thay
Your eyes are made of the six elements — earth, water, fire, air, space, and consciousness. They are made of these only, but they are beautiful. Should I make them mine? Should I try to make them last for a long time? Should I try to record them? But I know that what I can record would not be your true eyes…
Your eyes are impermanent. Your eyes are not you. Yes, I have been told, and I have seen it, yet they are still beautiful.
Just because they are impermanent, they are all the more beautiful, The things that do not last long are the most beautiful things — a shooting star, a firework.
Knowing your eyes are impermanent, I enjoy them without trying to make them last forever, without trying to hold on to or record them or make them mine. Loving your eyes, I remain free.