For Rob
Tonight we smoke and drink
And think of those
Who have passed on
Tonight we raise a glass
To laughter past
And good times gone
Memories of those whose
Friendship was true
And love was strong
So tonight let us all toast
Those we loved the most
And held so dear
Yes tonight we’ll celebrate
We’ll stay up late
Just like you’re here
Just like you’re here
I keep you in a box
in my bottom drawer
next to my socks and under
my old t shirts
When I first put you in the box
it was hard
I did not like you being there
but I understood why that was
where you must go
There were no choices left
Once a week I used to take the box out
and open it
We would visit
laugh and cry together for a little while
Then I would put you back and wait for six more days to pass
before I could say hello again
We do not visit anymore
I no longer take out the box
But every morning I open my bottom drawer
and push aside my t shirts
to make sure you are still there
I tried to write a love poem
But forgot the language
Do I start with eyes or lips
stars or moon
Do I confess
A tragic soliloquy of
self indulgent longing
or trumpet my unending, time defying devotion
Shall I promise everything
give nothing
and hope forever
speak of heavens and seas
laughter and brilliance
perhaps it is best to be quiet
maybe the memories will return
and I’ll recall the patterns of pen strokes
and heartbeats
Or perhaps you will offer lessons
on how to speak again
stars sing
loud with radiance
at the precise pitch
of a newborn’s cry or an old
man’s last breath
Distant watchers project the
past onto the backs of
the first blossoms of ideas
and watch them wither
snickering wings of dismay flutter
amongst dreams, shifting them in abject
absurdity
I read psalms written by children from religions yet to be seen
they beg forgiveness for the scars of past faiths
and wash blood from the eyes of their ancestors
