We saw the beauty
And wonder
When we had eyes
And held hands
When we had fingers,
When our bodies tricked us
Into being alive.
And we walked on
When we had legs
And kissed
When we had lips
And said words
When we had ears
And started to believe
In things we couldn't
See or touch,
And we threw ourselves away
When our bodies tricked us
Into dying.

I thought we would always
be ...
Like ham and cheese
Sausage and mash for peas
A double somersault on the trapeze
A warm snap after the freeze
A thank you after a please
A soothing cream for scuffed knees
A handkerchief for a sneeze
A cure for a disease
A pocket for loose keys
Honeysuckle and foxglove for bees
Shelter and shade for trees
A lace curtain for the breeze
...together.

It's all about settling
For less,
The cake tin and juice box are
empty
So we make do
With a biscuit
And water,
And now you have
Brought him on for me
I too have to make
Some substitutions.
The rustling leaves
Will now wake me
And not your touch,
The first rays of the sun,
Giving me false hope
In the grey bleakness,
Will be the smile
I will never trace again
With my fingers.
Later, if I'm lucky,
I can take a cloudless blue sky
Instead of your beauty
And the soft evening rain on
My face and lips
Will be your whispers.
The stars of course
Will remind me of
How far away you are,
I'll settle for that.

The not so tall
Dark, or handsome stranger
Clutches a half empty beer glass,
Peers out at the traffic and people
And sees only space.
He doesn't need the forgiveness
Of a woman
Or mates or casual aquantancies
Or interests and hobbies
A rewarding job
A neat car
A detached house
Or savings for a different
Rainy day.
He doesn't even need
Good health
Or a purpose in life
A reason for living,
Or God,
But there were times
When he did.

In the palm of my hand
Perfection
The stone I stole
From your beach
Forgiving me
For taking it away
From the sand
That cradled it, the sun
That warmed it
The waves that washed
Over it
For thousands of years,
The sublime smoothness
Of its soul,
Not striving to be
A moon or stars
It just IS
Already part of
The grand order
Complete in the universe
In the oneness I yearn for.

What would you do
If all your dreams came true?
Not a small one
Not one of them,
All of them.
What if you could
Do no wrong?
If everything you did
Turned to whatever
You wanted it to?
How would you feel,
What would you think
How would you live,
What changes would you make?
Don't ask me
I'm a million miles
From that.