Desert Rose

Think of me as a pause between point a and b
A minor hiccup in plans
A popped tire on the tourbus of your life
just when you needed to step out for a cigarette
so stand with me for just a moment longer
pursed lips blowing smoke rings to the wind
smiling in the face of fate
closing our eyes to the fact that this stop along your journey is a short one
but you have another minute, at least, so let’s smoke another
talk with me
late night hazy giggling conversations over flat, warm whiskey and soda
we forgot about
early morning fingers twisted in my hair
and our lips meeting
parting
tasting of one another all we can in the short time shared together
I want to remember this every way that I can
Trace fingers along the length of your lithe frame so my skin can recall the route taken to make you sigh into my shoulder
Plant a hundred kisses from your knees to your neck along supple landscape
like a memory of me might grow from them
Blooming flowers reaching up to your ears and whispering
When those Arizona nights might be too cold
And my arms surround empty space in my st pete apartment
I’d like to think you might miss this sudden weekend
This unexpected detour
Because I know I will
When swans fly west for soothing winds blowing over desert sands
I’ll still be sitting here
Smoking cigarettes under banyon trees overlooking the bay
And wondering how far across the horizon I’ll have to stare
Before I can see my desert rose again