Out on the balcony, they stood together
wind wild and rummaging through the trees
She wore nothing but the moonlight
So many wishes she could have made that night
As he wondered how she’d like it here
sewn to the pages of this brittle story

A character in a poem
timeless in a way
with him when he reads
but gone
when he closes that book again

One last act before their stories parted
in the hotel shower, they washed each other
her scent carefully removed, his desire soaped clean
They let the water snatch away
the remnants of their lust
they were retreating, becoming

Characters in a poem
timeless in their way
alive when you read this
but gone
when you turn that page again

Of all life’s estrangements, this one really smarts
She wants to be remembered, she wants to be eternal
underneath the stars, her wish will be half-filled
He wished he was a better man
he wished he could be all she’d ever need
but the future glimpsed reveals nothing beyond

Characters in a poem
timeless in their way
alive for forty lines
but gone
once you put that book away…

[2023]