I love you in this prickly, brittle season
No less for its worrisome aspects
No less for wandering your hazy landscape
Clutching a talisman to ward off despair
In my love, I have taken your shape
My skin crackles and burns with yours
My tendrils seek sustenance for us both
And my senses alert to the taste of the wind
I have grown akin to my neighbor jackrabbits
Ever aware, mindful of the scent of new flame
Dreaming of escape and safe quarters
And still your quiet beauty holds me captive
I imagined myself enshrouded in your rooted embrace
Held close to your bosom, feeding what has sustained me
Until we become enjoined as one, but I awake
To a truth prodding me on a path away from you
When I leave you now, I back away
So to be in your presence just a little longer
Leaving even for a moment turns
My thoughts to that final departure
And I don’t want to forget
Your slow rhythm like a calming breath
Your wild whispers in the night
Your kaleidoscopic adornment of earth tones
Shattering like a mirror
My heart in pieces
My gift to you, my offering
My story to share
