Alpha & Omega (2 poems)

exquisite

Breath, oh so hard coming; my

Chest is thick with anticipation.

Sleep is a dear experience; time

Crawls, as in a cannabine fog.

Defining this exquisite excruciation,

Opining as to its "very real sense."

Nonsense! I can no more than babble--

Consequence eludes consciousness.

"UNDERSTAND, NOW, one can't be too hasty in such matters-

On first and second date, stay cool, don't

Drool all over her,

Fool!" Restraint escapes discipline.

She is almost here; I clock her course,

Breezing, breathing, closer in my mind.

Let her presence be as thrilling as her image;

Yet her memorized features hide from my straining brain.

A car door's muffled thud:

Ardor's racing past uncertainty.

Passion jolts my heart as I see her,

Dashing into my arms' tight embrace.

(November 6, 1987)

exit

Breath, oh so hard coming; my

Chest is thick with pain and dread.

Sleep is a dear experience; time

Crawls, as in a cannabine fog.

Defining this exit excruciation,

Opining as to its "very real sense."

Nonsense! I can no more than babble--

Consequence eludes consciousness.

"UNDERSTAND, NOW, one can't be too hasty in such matters-

No first or second dates; don't fret,

Time yet for tears, fears;

Opine as to what happened. Knowledge escapes consciousness.

She is gone now; I clock her course,

Leaving, fading, farther from my mind.

Oh, how her presence was so thrilling, so reassuring;

Now her memorized features hide from my straining brain.

A car door's muffled thud:

Ardor's racing past uncertainty.

Fear and sadness jolt my heart; it is not she,

No longer in my arms' tight embrace.

(May 18, 2006)