**In honor of Valentine’s Day, we are excited to share two pieces of writing that Jim Elliot wrote to his beloved Elisabeth. The first is below. Early in their love story, in September 1949, Elisabeth traveled to Portland to visit Jim and meet his family for the first time. Jim penned these poems at their shared day on the shore and sent them to Elisabeth.
This came between sunset & moonrise Tuesday after you left, on the side hill where we had prayer & reading…
Wheels carried her into silence — out of my reach.
I feared lest darkness,
closing round Might gain our souls,
and we Lose sight of real things
But nay, the sun that ruled our days
Has lit The moon to rule our night.
And this today– sponsored by your words in the ‘ocean cave’, “Pinch me.”
The Bellow of the tide
From the Blue expanding wide
Beyond the roughness of the rocks of Falcon Head,
Funnelled hugely, vainly tried
To rend our cavern, where it died
In quiet cool of sandy bed Beneath our feet.
We shivered as we stood
Found no words to fit the mood
Which numbed us silent.
We quaffed Each other’s good
But, not knowing then to brood,
Spoke nonsense– laughed The sea to silence!
The touch of naked shoulder
As each felt his own the colder
Melted other touch– things into dream
False, every fact I told her.
Lie, that overhanging boulder–
All things that were did only seem As we know
Love, Simply Jim
**This next piece is the end of a love letter that Jim wrote to Elisabeth on August 31, 1953 from Cuartel de Canelos, about weeks before they would marry.
“It is getting dusk and I only want you to know that I love you and remember you hourly. It was just a week ago today that I saw you stand waving to me high on the cliff, but it seems like a lifetime… I pray for you there, like I have never before, I think, because I know your situation better than ever. May the God of all grace strengthen you. Your Very own, Jim”