Images and words 
suddenly appear, 
words longed for 
hitting deep 
as they wrap around 
and envelop me,
overwhelming yet satisfying.

Since our last meeting 
your ghostly presence arrived 
in the oddest of places: 
romantic restaurants, 
quaint cafes, 
art galleries, 
long car drives, 
concert halls, 
walking in a park, 
every room of the house, 
and late at night in bed. 

Days leading up 
to significant life events, 
it was you 
always there 
intervening 
and me not finding the right words 
to express the emptiness, 
the loss, 
the longing, 
the wanting. 

Reunions are great, they say,
as long as you don’t have to deal with the past, 
as long as it doesn’t control your present, 
as long as the flame doesn’t consume you.

Yet, here I stand steadily in the burning flames with you.