this page won’t coöperate
when I try to tell it
what it was like to sit
on the edge of such a vast abyss
with you by my side
talking, listening

I don’t think this ink can know
what it meant to me
every time I made you smile

when I lift my fingers from the keyboard
it so quickly forgets all the words
I’ve caressed into being in so many poems
this chunk of metal holds so many memories
so much of my life

the steel in my blood crying out
for the raw magnetism of the ocean
and the beauty of a pale moon on a warm horizon

and we sat together in the midst of a cloud
uncertainty and excitement made me shiver
but then there was you next to me
and I shivered a little bit less
we almost held hands for a moment
just as we got back to my car

the waves called my name
and you ran along with me
speaking to the ocean,
an old friend with many secrets,
I wanted to turn to you
to feel your face so close to mine
I wanted to gaze into your eyes
and speak your beauty
with a million tongues
I wanted to kiss you
and take your hand
but I was afraid