When I Return

I would love you as no other could
If there were something I could bring you,
Agathon, that no one possessed:
Not a rich tapestry that might hang,
In tapered folds, above your bed, brushing
Silk sheets with purple cloth from Tyre
That shines, but a valuable, unique,
End of the Ocean gift that only I could give,
Tempering deserts and the flails of the arctic
Winds, shielding my body from forests' folds
Of ebullient growth and the frothing
Mountains, where I would maybe press worn soles
To ice. Then maybe I could conquer lions,
Then bring the jackals into valleys
With a weave of vine – no other gift
Would buy you away, whether the wine
Of love or secret, beautiful words.