do you dream

do you dream of me
move me there
from here
at a distance?

do I dream of you
see you here
when you’re there
at a distance?

yes, we share a dream
you who are here
and I who am there
defying distance

I asked an old one the secret of life and they said

thoughts and words and feelings
companionship and friendship and loving
but most of all
yes most of all
blood and sweat and honey

my knowledge of your love for me

is the shade of a full-leaved tree across my heart;

it brings calm

and the possibility of sleep

I slipped in the shower
thinking of you
I tripped on the staircase
thinking of you
I think I can now quite unsafely say
I’ve fallen for you

sky cloud sand sea

I am dreaming you are next to me

sky cloud rock sea

I am dreaming; you are next to me

she never told me
she loved me
she must have been better
than me
at keeping secrets

nearly completely

is how you described your love

nearly but not quite

Sid faded away in tea dance time
slow
slow
then too soon
quick quick.

Foxtrot Oscar he used to say
when his knees would not lift him
and his eyes would sparkle.

Through the window
we would watch his face
and see the smile
as his left foot tapped out the rhythm.

One two three
one two three
one
and then no more.

Bet still held his hand
as she always had
from their very first dance with the carpets rolled back
and the piano in the corner.

One two three
she said.
One two three
again.
One.

I hear you there

as has often been heard

between the fading notes of birdsong

I see you there

in the velvet spaces

between the snow and pines