And when you tell me that you love me
There is a vulnerability in your voice
An exentuation of the syllables
A focused look in your eyes
Because of the realness and density
Weighing down on that single phrase
As if you were trying wholly
To convince me that you loved me then
But nothing compared to right now
And nothing compared to tomorrow

When you tell me that you love me*
I know that you mean it
I couldn't quite ever before

If he were a canvas,
     My fingers through his dark hair
     Would be gentle whips of cornflower
     Or the shade of the southern shores
     Aching for sun kissed sands.

     The deep tint of the midnight hour
     Is the feel of my palm on his cheek;
     Unspoken words spark between our skin,
     Igniting as I am red phosphorus and he is sulfur.

If he were a canvas,
     Our breathless laughter
     Is a warm canary radiating
     Across all the dark spaces we ignore
     Like solitary candles in suburban windows.

     Our hushed voices on the pillow
     Is the gold with which the sun shines;
     The reflection of my heart in his eyes
     Is silver like a glowing full moon.

If he were a canvas,
     My lips gently grazing his forehead
     Are a soft powder pink,
     Like the petals of an awakening rose
     Or the shade of clouds draped in dawn

     But when mine meet his, amaranth.
     A ceaseless incandescence
     Of raw desire and a hint of diffidence
     From a flower seeded in our gray matter.

     When he touches my skin
     It’s in shades of pine and dandelion and wisteria
     And suddenly I see the painting
     Has covered the painter in romantic chaos

And it is the apron they put on display.

Some days she is far above me
cumulus, billowing
complimenting the sky
as she drifts and changes
slowly
Shine one moment
Shadows next

Some days she can't be seen
or is distant and alone on the horizon
she shies from the Sun
but at night we watch the stars together

Some days
after the rains
when all the quiet things come out
and patter the forest floor with
hushed steps
when I am outside listening
and my head is like an empty bowl
she curls from me
rising, slipping out over the valley
embracing the hills
and running her fingers thru the trees
like so much tall grass
laughing

I breathe and she is my breath
filling my hallow
she is all I see

I'm mesmerized by you in the front seat of your car
And also the passenger side
Your fingers tapping on the steering wheel
Loving you in the left lane
But also in the right
At noon and midnight
In the quiet of a glance
Or in a crowded room
I can't comprehend your trance
I'm just worried it's too soon

Oh how I wish, quite dreamily
I could feel you breathing beside me
To fall asleep and under your charms
Your strong hands and arms
Wrapped around my waiting waist
Right now, there is no other place
That I would want to be
Than having you next to me
Pulling me closer till we collide
Very quietly in the night time
Sheets entangling us together
I could stay there forever
Then we wouldn't have to leave
This pure dream of you and me

We aren't really kids anymore
Yet I still care for you as a child does
With a trusting nature and a wonder
But I want you like a woman does
In all of those ways
In every aspect of the phrase