Living and loving . . .

A few of you know that I write poetry, but most of you do not. Although I’ve been butchering the art since my early twenties, it’s not something I wear on my sleeve. Sometimes I write a lot, sometimes I don’t. It just depends on when the Muses appear and where they take me . . .

I wrote the first draft of a poem about unrequited love in 2003. I was crazy about a girl but circumstances kept us apart. I didn’t finish the poem until the conclusion of a long term relationship in late 2007. But it’s really a compilation of feelings about many relationships I’ve had. And it has been a source of comfort during their conclusions, regardless of the attendant circumstances:

She crashed through me like a thunderstorm
Shedding percussive waves that rattled my bones and shook my soul
Drawing me toward her with a force more powerful
Than the heavens from which she came.
Arms outstretched, I beseeched the gods
That she might stay with me.
And when she had given all that was mine
She faded beyond the horizon
Her distant rumbling a gentle purring
That resonates in every beat of my heart.

Let’s all just agree to ignore for the moment the awkward symbolism (under the present circumstances) of a past relationship or relationships “resonating in every beat of my heart". Rather, the focus of this poem should be that we are given what we need, nothing more, nothing less. And that can never be taken away, despite appearances to the contrary.

And it occurs to me now that the “she” referred to in this poem can be a metaphor for life. After all, if life isn’t about love, what is it about? So whether I live another 50 years or 50 minutes, I will take comfort in the realization that I have been given all that is mine, and that it will always remain with me.