a religious love

in the first part of the journey, i felt our 
love flesh deep, rhythm unabashed 
and rich, i realize it’s religious

so struck am i, in the thick of this flow

i wish to call you, tell you all, i want you 

to know, we’re dancing in the splendor


and then the shift, particles apart present 

beckons, elicits separation, and i sense 

you elementally, icicles catching sun


i wonder if you’ve read sally rooney’s

“conversations with friends,” and thought 

of us in bobbi and frances’s passionate 


and expansive relationship (i did!) how, 

in writing a short story about her friend, 

frances realizes, she was the love of my life


i read about remedios varo and leonora

carrington and remember how you said,

one day outside of topos chicos when


i was terrified you’d yell at me for wanting 

to go to grad school too, and you got angry 

as i shielded myself from my imagining of 


your potential attack with a spew of words

only to hurt you by taking up more than

my appropriate share (i’m sorry for doing


this, please know it's come from terror,

neurodivergence, excitement or some

combination) you were tender with 


your future, wanting support, and there

i was, splooging from a place of fear

that had me short of breath and near


tears before you arrived to the table.

you forgave me, and i sat on your lap–

yes, THAT is when you said, re: earlier,


you truly believed they’d write about

us in the books, i said, “both of us?” 

and you said, “how could they write


about one of us and not the other?”

i drew your face and pretty green 

dress, strewn with pink and yellow


flowers and we decided to get a bottle

of rosé and go back to your house for

another night of loving each other yet.


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