Life

A series of hello's and goodbyes.
First, the initial tug.
Heart strings tight
And hope as gold and warm as the sun.

Then talks late on the porch,
Chips of ice, and blisters of conversation.
Accidental meetings and frost days.
You have become my friend.

Lightning strikes, and flannel blankets
Keep us warm.
Your eyes light up when the light falls.
I like your freckles, and your blunt cheeks.

Then I move far away, and you as well.
And we try to write but letters are not like
Freckles and cheeks but become
Tears that accompany shadows.

And everything is dead again and light--
Is there but not in you.
And our creek is gone and mud is in its place.
Mud,instead of sparkles in your smile.

Wherever you are, you are in me.
But not you now, you who was.
Stamps and scratched out sentences.
You don't say it anymore.

But lightning and rain on summer nights
With runs in the woods and sallow arguments.
And lips where only the stars could see,
Mark who you are. Then goodbye.