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When Mary Oliver says “There isn’t anything in this world but mad love. Not in this world. No tame love, calm love, mild love, no so-so love. And, of course, no reasonable love. Also there are a hundred paths through the world that are easier than loving. But, who wants easier? We dream of love, we moon about it, thinking of Romeo and Juliet, or Tristan, or the lost queen rushing away over the Irish sea, all doom and splendor.” I totally understand.

To celebrate Valentine’s Day, and the month of love in general, I compiled for you 15 poems from some of my favorite poets, such as William Butler Yeats, Louise Glück, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and many more.

There are poems about all stages of love, from enamorment to nostalgia and remembering past love.

I often find myself drawn to poems with a melancholy and desperate tone, but I trie…