Can I bring him home? she said.
She pleaded with her Mamma,
Can I bring him home?
She pleaded, on her knees.
I found him by the woodland well
Where ivy cloaks the trees,
Where the Morning Glory twists and twines,
Where rose musk coats the breeze.
He is of the mortal race.

A naked man, his manhood cupped
In praying hands, stood by.
He stood as if disgraced.
The shadows hid his face.
The shadows hid his smile.

But what will you do with him?
Will you wrap him up in feathered robes
To keep him warm at night?
Where will you keep him?
Locked away?
Hidden in the dark?
All men need the light.
And did he seduce you
Or did Cupid strike the spark?
Will you bind his wrists with bindweed?
Or will you set him free?

We’ll have to live in secret.
I don’t need lock or key.
He won’t mind where we live.
He wants to live with me.
I stole him from the elf queen.
I had to break her spell.
Why it is I love him,
That I cannot tell.

But I will stitch a shirt for him
That reaches to the ground
All embroidered here and there
With birds and flowers and stars
And I will braid his hair at night
With berries I have found.
I’ll make a chorus of the birds
To sing a song of sixpence,
And keep the wolf away
On our wedding day.
He promises to stay with me
Until he fades and dies.
My love tells me no lies.

I will always love him,
My loving, lovely, gentle love,
The beautiful Tam Lin.