fortasse
could …
it be?
could it?
oh the stars I’ve counted hoping -
the blue-sad moons I’ve watched dance a-sea
the numberless shadow-long suns I’ve
seen burn to dusk
and shatter the morning twilight
while I prayed …
while I pulled the petals off daisies
each one a heart -
each one a face that strummed me
or a breathy whisper that promised me Forever …
lips that shaped a craving - that invited
me inside their walls to play those
tender tasting games …
fiery eyes that pulled like my pulse -
that dared me to dip and dive and drown …
catkin-soft hands I wore like gloves
that perused my flesh
and read my needs like Braille …
warm, secret places that call to me still -
that were my obsession …
and my ruin
needs that I knew and
sated to a chaotic perfection
and hearts that I wrapped my dreams around -
that wrapped their amusements around me
and bled for only prosperity …
countless are the dreams and
the divine sinews they spun within
that I shared hopes upon -
that my harlequin heart spent a
lifetime wishing true
that the strings of my soul have
written into love songs
and sung to the barren winter sky …
I was all in, you see
I wore their passion like skin -
made love with my entire being …
I swam up those souls to
merge in ecstasy and contentment -
to be consumed … and defined
still …
I was never enough
some element of their requirements was
always beyond my grasp -
my blood let to puddle at my feet
and stain me hopeless …
time and change were the rains that
washed it away
testament and tears, lost in the downpour
my best efforts given to counting dabs of
moonlight as they sparkled waves
or walking far out at low-tide to scream my
anguish to the heavens -
a bell buoy chime, my cold reply …
but …
I still breathe … and I still wonder
and those torturous-but-sweet words like
“perhaps” and “someday” and “if”
have returned to taunt me,
for your eyes afix mine with a rare spark …
your voice shakes and stammers ever-so-slightly
when you speak my name …
your smile always widens a bit more
when you notice me …
and sometimes I catch you watching
when your focus should be elsewhere …
oh, could it be?
could it?
does someone still find me as hope,
now that time has withered my id?
do I yet make another chest thrum faster?
am I someone’s last thought before they
drift to dreams each night?
do soft, spring petals still blossom?
does summer yet await,
it’s warm skies awash with color and promise?
does that fat rascal moon hold just a
wee bit more enchantment?
will this weary scoundrel be granted one last
romantic adventure?
if it can be, oh please let it -
fill this lonely old heart to bursting
let the world spin one more callow charm …
and spare me that sad, fumbling fool
for his is a yoke I can not carry again
a vault too empty of stars
and an ocean far, far …
too deep.
Copyright © 2025 Gregory Richard Barden
( photographic art created copyright-free by the poet with GALA AI software )
Post Comments
Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.
Please
Login
to post a comment