Your interpretation is a little different from my standpoint
when I wrote this.
For me at least, the persona in this poem is someone who prides
himself for his mastery of words -- and he seeks solace in them as
well.
There's love lost, no doubt, and he grapples with warring minds and
a divided heart. In the sanctuary of his inner state he paints a
world of coulda, woulda, shouldas with his words, and yet, when he
finally sees her in the flesh, a chance meeting after a long
parting -- his world comes to a standstill.
And he realises with a jolt, that no amount of words or yearning
could ever hope to capture her loveliness. Just with a chance
meeting, she again robs him of his one, unique gift and renders him
speechless.
Even then, he is helpless drawn to her. To preserve a tenuous grip
on his reason, he can only hope to see her from afar.
