It was late December.  Stripped trees
swayed in lost rhythms to the accelerating
breeze, scattered leaves moaned and drifted
across somber fields, cold and stabbed,
rolling below featureless city streets in
black shadows.

I walked towards the edge of the rising bridge
and stared at the gray clouds, how their stained
soul gazed into my watery eyes, a flawed existence
smashed in broken ballads, screeching scars,
turned away by earth and Saturn.

Above my ice-covered heart where the waterfalls
rise and freeze in deadened degrees, undesired,
the heaviness of waves crying in the dark,
destroyed by rejection, those crushed nights
surrounded in loneliness, sinking into slammed gutters.

I could taste the raged liquor settling inside
my dry heart, the reeking smell scarred
and conflicted, ravaged eyes exposed
and searching, as I watched the sleeping
sun fade away, discolored, drifting
in failure.

I tried to force my love upon him
down by the rising seas where the
sunrise hovered above beach houses,
deep azure waves searching for
drifting dreams, darkened trees
soundless and confused, meaningless
leaves seeping into loneliness and buried
thoughts, as heart longed for his touch,
soft skin resting upon heavenly dimensions,
chiseled cheekbones a perfect square of
glorious delight, bright marine eyes a
constellation of many shades, all
defining an astonishing masterpiece.
And as I stared at the high mountains
in the background, how its hazy depiction
lingered inside my soul, crying screams
sifting into dangerous worlds, the way
raging flames explode in a raw stabbed
beat, my body wanted the moon and stars
more than anything in the world.  But as
much as I tried to sing to his soul, there was
a strong shift in his stance, a heavy repulsion
running in disgrace.  And as I stood still in a
blanket of gray shadows, I could see the shattered
harmonies hanging in the air, waiting to find
it's distant lover.

Back then, when it was
just you and me cruising
the streets on a summer
escape, the radio blasting
Biggie Smalls song, Juicy,
while we bopped our heads
to the beat, hypnotic hands
waving in the air, sunlit skies
smiling in sight, upbeat vibes
surrounding the landscape,
as I breathed in the afternoon
breeze, beautiful melodies
dancing in stardust dominions.  
I gazed over at your gleaming
depiction, almond bronze skin,
a magnificent mural beyond
my emerald heart, sweet rosy
cheeks a world of many desires,
ocean eyes a midnight wave of
poetry in sheer perfection.  
How was I to know that you were
the bright beginning in my existence
that would unchain the flames inside
my frame, the one shining star that
saw beyond a fading shadow,
a blossoming beauty waiting to
rise out of the ashes.

I stood inside the kitchen
by the sink staring outside
the glass window at the
fallen leaves beneath a
sea of forgotten trees,
autumn breezes whispering
quietly in the air, as the
words of your love faded
away from my soul. The rose
petals were dying in a river of
discolored dreams, lifeless stems
were frozen and choking, a broken
dimension sinking in stained memories.  
And as I wiped my fingers across the
surface of the stained-glass window,
secluded shadows jaded and hazy,
faceless and breathless, my heart
longed to break away from your dungeon.
Still, there was the screaming question
pounding inside my brain, unanswered
diction lingering in the falling rain.
Why do I keep chasing after distant love?

It was late fall in October
when I lost my heart in
the eastern rivers, the smell
of dying chemistry above me,
lost lovers wandering in lonely
lanes, slow squalling sounds
deafening my existence,
black ravaging hurricanes
tormenting my dreams, as I
tried to silence your love inside
my soul.  Deep shifting diction
hung in the shadowed sky,
heartbroken oceans screamed in
hard swollen depths, brutal bruises
beyond itself, withdrawn distances
unreached, bleeding reasons and
broken breezes, a vivid green
beat blazing a hardened death.

Most nights I’d sit inside
my vehicle and wait for
my best friend, Charles, to
get off work at Walmart.
sultry sounds of Brandy’s
song, Best Friend, playing
in the background, as I
breathed in the sweet
melodic harmonies,
bassline vocals rocking
in extreme vibrations.
And as the hours passed by,
I’d stare out into the night at
the diamond bright stars,
so crystal divine and dreamy,
a gleaming equation of
wavelengths seeping inside
my mind.  I could feel the
cool breeze swirling in soft
sounds around my body,
a sweet array of brilliance
breathing new life inside
my veins.

You will never know
my African king how
much I adore you, the
dream of many dreams
inside your soul that
sparks the fire inside
my heart, dark temptations
of desire within intelligence
and resilience, commitment
and fulfillment, gentleness
and promptness, hustle and
flow, emotion and motion,
sacrifice and aspire, the forever
love songs that shine in your sight.  
Your melanin glow brightens
my spirit, every deep hue a bold
beautiful canvas crafted in
stunning perfection.