.

Beneath dark storm clouds,
graphic novels cried wholeheartedly
in pencil drawings competing
for front cover status
Asphalt collected mud
hoping shoe prints
formed in patterns like Dali
Wainscoting climbed walls,
chasing ivy vines
to crown molding heights
Kittens chased ***** of yarn
between grandma’s legs in
sagging stockings
on the front porch
And I counted rain drops,
wishing I had paid better
attention in algebra
Then you kissed me
and all became
everything under the sun

.

Love took its good old sweet time finding me
It’s not like I was hiding,
disguised as some overbearing second helping,
lollygagging behind picket signs and leftover *** roast
I thought I was okay, not a bad catch,
I’m sure one many would have tossed back,
but not all of them…right?

But days passed, calendar pages torn and shredded
One after the other, odd numbers, even numbers,
hell even holidays, ripped from their colorful covers
showing a quaint covered bridge in Vermont
or a beautiful ocean scene on the west coast
and still I sat alone, ready to give up

Then…well, you have read my poetry,
at least I think you have, some of you did right?
So (if you did) you know what happened next
and it is wonderful, still hard to believe,
this feeling of total happiness is new to me
It felt weird at first, why was I smiling so much,
what’s with the butterflies in my stomach,
why the hell could I not wait to get out of bed every day
I must be dreaming (you know me, I’m always dreaming)

But it is real and I feel alive,
like life matters, everything matters,
the sun is brighter, the skies are bluer
No longer the small fish in the big pond
just hoping for a mosquito to land on the surface
or searching for a lily pad to escape the light,
now I swim excitedly every day into her arms

Love took its good old sweet time finding me
and I am glad I waited

.

You and me were always with each other
Before we knew the other was ever there

Destiny carves its path through lives,
filling needs unknown until it happens
Bridging gaps of empty terrain
where love is sensed, felt
on dark days like eyes watching,
as our hearts wait for that one
planned to accompany us on the journey

You and me we belong together
Just like a breath needs the air

So many comparisons play,
moving pieces to spaces, uncovered
Sliding down chutes, climbing ladders,
believing that something waits, something good
Inspired to keep going, following the lines
drawn in tingles on skin,
need becomes clear as we are found,
where we always belonged

I told you if you called I would come runnin’
Across the highs the lows the in betweens

You’ve taken my hand and showed me
things are not always as they seem
Until you find them in your shadow,
lifting you when you fall, gently,
caressing your soul in unexplained notions,
safety and comfort with merely the touch
of caring fingers, wrapping arms, a voice

You and me we’ve got two minds that think as one
And our hearts march to the same beat

Your eyes, my eyes, we see identical patterns,
curving about skylines in high rise tempos
As we walk together, one step after the other,
but two steps towards the other, always for the other,
in whatever direction they choose,
syncopated movements hand in hand

They say everything it happens for a reason
You can be flawed enough but perfect for a person

These scars of past seasons, cold winds blow
across arid deserts of details and misgivings
Cloaked in love’s blanket, blind spots
accepted beyond yesterdays, erased by tomorrows
Put away in box with a lock, no key is available
not that it is wanted anyway

Someone who will be there for you when you fall apart
Guiding your direction when you’re riding through the dark

This light that leads from your smile,
your understanding, your acceptance
reflected back as a mirrored image
Enhancing the beam of this forever feeling,
strolling down avenues of pleasure for
happiness is always a two way street,
northbound, southbound, together

*Oh that’s you and me…