THE KISS

 

         How long is a kiss?

         A moment

         Or an eternity?

         The next morning

            And two decades later

         I still marveled

         At the taste of you

            Surprisingly sweet

               A sensation that registered more on the soul

               than the tongue

         At the feel of you

            Soft cloth over firmness,

               The shape of you

                  An unbelievably perfect fit in my arms

         At the gift of unexpected love from you

            A strange unquenching drink

            that increased thirst with every hungry gulp

         At a kiss that was recorded more in eternity

            Than memory.

 

         That Kiss

            A few minutes in duration

         Could have lasted all night

            But I pulled away

            Because my heart was not mine to give

                           But you took it anyway.

         Perhaps this kiss

         Started in a previous life

         A billion years would have been to few to be with you

            One night was a touch too much.

         I have forgotten your name

            But I cannot forget you

            Or that kiss.

 

         That night

         The stars

            To the astromomer's startled gaze

         Kissed each other.

 

                                    c. 1977/14 Jun 84/18 Oct 99