When I met my lover
Lilacs were new,
He said, “I brought some lilacs,
Lilacs for you.”

I took them eagerly
Laughing in surprise;
He said: “They are pretty
Just like your eyes.”

I pressed the pointed blossoms
Close to my cheek,
And the smooth green leaves…
But I couldn’t speak.

How was I to tell him,
Spring being new,
How say: “It is the lilacs
I love, not you.”