" To Neuschwanstein Castle"
Way across the ocean and above the lands
sits a regal legacy for all curious eyes.
An ivory castle on a lonely peak,
the place of which I now so proudly speak
This is where even the clouds bow down
to many majestic soaring spires.
It was the dream of a king long ago,
a magical place that his heart would inspire
Only for beauty would King Ludwig build
holding art and imagination above war.
Dismissing traditions, logic and restraints
for his soul's own dreams and desires
He sat on the banks of the river Rhine
imagining many an original palace.
Filling them with velvet, gold, and silver swans
in his mind adorning castles where he would find solace
But now the mad king has been gone for years
and Bavaria has never been quite the same,
but his creations have stood and greeted the wanderers
historians and dreamers that after him came
Though all are rare in craft and dripping with style
one of his lovely dreams stands above the rest
reaching beyond the Alpine rolling skies
coloring heaven with a touch of human class
It was in Neuschwanstein, where I fell in love again
with the beautiful castle I had dreamed of many days
with the earth, its inhabitants, the nature that hides them in its breast
and the swan filled lakes that capture the sun's final rays
Oh, those mountains with their fancy caps of snow!
The whispering cow bells carried by the gentle wind.
The serenity of the painted villages sleeping below,
I remember the sun sink in a bed of heavenly glow
I remember my eyes filling up with tears
when I finally saw it after all those years
of dreaming of seeing it with my own two eyes and said,
"I cannot believe I am here at last!"
I could barely breath from so much excitement
for this mad king's home held so much enchantment
and I wished that more dreamers like him would exist
for madness with such taste is truly a gift!
Who said he was mad? I don't understand!
When thinking of him I see splendor and grace
Ahead of his time? That would be the case!
So sad that his people could not comprehend
That his brilliant mind couldn't help but create
and his imagination had no other escape
than to build many things and make dreams come true
Things that could only be dreams to the likes of me and you
Blessed is whoever falls upon this place,
tucked into the heart of the Bavarian Alps,
for this is the place where I left my heart,
at King Ludwig's castle, Oh how I long to go back!
- DL
