Love poems of Frederick Douglas Harper

MATHEMATICAL LOVE 
Sincere love is a true number, 
A whole number; 
Never divided, subtracted, or diminished 
In quantity or quality; 
Never zero, never negative; 
Always positive and increasing in 
Weight and geometric size; 
Sincere love is an infinite whole of 
Two intersecting human sets; 
Sincere love multiplies itself by itself, 
And adds to itself over time. 
Reprinted: Harper’s Romantica: On Peace and Romance, 1988. 

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LOVE POEMS of Frederick Douglas Harper 
 
81 
SITTING IN A CHAIR WITH A TEDDY BEAR 
You say you sat in a chair 
With your favorite teddy bear 
Tucked beneath your hair; 
Yes, you relaxed in your chair, 
So you now tell, by the fireplace’s 
Glare—hugging, soothing, and stroking 
A warmed teddy bear with gentle 
Care and a pleasurable stare; 
So you tell, you breathed holiday 
Air in the cuddly care of your 
Designated bear; 
Now you recall of a night with 
Christmas tree lights and a lovable 
Bear in the romantic embrace of your care; 
You tell, I see, of sitting in a chair 
With this special teddy bear; 
Now you have told of a night, I see; 
A night I recall that you spent with me. 
Reprinted: Harper’s Romantica: On Peace and Romance, 1988. 

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Frederick Douglas Harper 
 
82 
TRUE LOVE LASTS 
True love like gold 
Will not rust with time; 
And like fine silver, its 
Tarnish can be polished to 
Original brilliance or 
A greater luster; 
True love seeks not fault nor 
Excuse for escape; 
True love seeks itself; 
True love endures all times 
And circumstance; 
True love shines forever. 
Reprinted: Harper’s Romantica: On Peace and Romance, 1988. 

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LOVE POEMS of Frederick Douglas Harper 
 
83 
A GIFT TO YOU 
A gift to you 
For what you’ve done, 
Not for what I expect of you; 
A gift to you, 
For what you are, 
Not for what I want you to be; 
A gift to you, 
For what we have shared, 
And not for what we give 
To each other. 
Reprinted: Harper’s Romantica: On Peace and Romance, 1988. 

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Frederick Douglas Harper 
 
84