Guilt will wilt the sweetest flower,
Cause the very sun to glower,
Though the skies their tears may shower.
Guilt will wilt the sweetest flower.

Shame will tame the lion’s power,
Make the boldest warrior cower,
Turn the taste of triumph sour.
Guilt will wilt the sweetest flower.

For each mister, miss, or madam,
Son or lover— this is so.
In the Bible Eve and Adam
Did discover long ago…

That guilt will wilt the sweetest flower,
Steal the pleasure from the hour,
Even in the greenest bower—
Guilt will wilt the sweetest flower.

Note: Poem/Song Lyric ~ written in the 1980s for Harley’s version of “East of the Sun and West of the Moon”