You will come–
to the edge of this world
where the sea inhales the sky,
where silver droplets drip from the hanging moon’s open mouth,
and the pulling tides keep time with my waiting.
You will come–
not as roaring thunder,
but as warmth on tanned salt skin,
a fresh breath stirring the indigo silk of night
in a hidden place beyond naming.
I wait for you
in the distance
with arms open wide,
with hands that have never forgotten
the weight of your presence.
Starfall clings to your hair,
and I let it–
each flicker a gentle kiss you haven’t given yet.
Pull me deeper,
not away–
through distant constellations collapsing in sublime delight,
across golden fields of glowing dust
and cities made only of memory.
There is no disgust here–
only the hunger to be seen,
and the softness of becoming.
My desire is a spoken prayer now,
not an open wound.
You inhabit it
with reverence.
I am not broken.
I am paused–
a held note
in an unwritten song the cestial choirs and stars are still composing.
Call me forward–
with your voice,
not with sorrow,
but with the rhythm of your fingertips
softly brushing the air between us.
Even absence wears your unforgotten scent.
I have not fallen.
I’ve been laid down–
gently–
by the invisible hands of light.
Waiting.
You do not mock.
You shimmer.
This world aches with your outline,
and I praise it
because it holds your splendor and shape.
I draw the curtain of night wide open.
Clouds part like breath beneath your gaze.
The wind does not move without purpose–
it moves with the memory of your fingers,
your presence pressing the sky into form.
I no longer pace.
I rest–
peacefully,
between skin and longing,
between the heat of my pulse
and the ghost of your mouth.
I did not give myself away.
I gave myself to you.
Willfully.
Wanting.
Woven in your majestic gravity.
This is no disgrace.
This is worship.
This is rising
again and again
toward the sun
you left burning in me.
Copyright Malcolm Gladwin
JUNE 2025
Where You Will Come
This poem, along with others I’ve recently shared, comes from a book I’m currently writing:
Quiet Pools and Other Witnesses
If this piece resonated with you, I invite you to explore the other poems in the collection—and I welcome your thoughts, reflections, and comments