Poetry
Charley Allen
four months she gave me
four months she
gave me reason
to laugh cry live a little bit more
and love
good god she gave me
four months
worth of loving,
much as I could,
best as I thought I could,
inferno fire of love
and whirlwind storms of
kisses blowing in
from east-west-south-north
harbor of arms embrace
at night
wrapped up tight
land-locked maroon sheets
cast-away isolated never sending out
signals for rescue
four months she gave me
grin and grimace,
pinch to the side snuggle up tight
good morning kiss
and wiggle squirm out reachin' over
blaring alarm siren call "hello, world"
before I burrow back down snooze-button flail and a be back soon
four months of running late
for work and
running home early, door knob turn and glasses-watch-shoes-sweater-pants
hit the floor "welcome home" baby doll
and climb in but you best keep those winter blue cold hands
under your pillow
four months she
gave me spring in my step and
flame passion tickles on my skin and
ocean's full sky-wide smiles and
bravado-rich loud and long laughs and
quiet book reading curled-up study nights and
side glances and averted eyes and innocent touches
and giddy little grinning not understanding a damn thing I'm reading
cause those words were close
but she was closer and every little teeth pull of her bottom lip
half-squint, tongue out scribbled down note just
pulling me in until my book hit the bed and my hands hit her pen and...
four months,
just
four months
but
everything
to me
four months,
she gave me
everything
This poem appeared in Church on Thursday, Issue #10, October 2003.
