I did not hesitate to drink in the lavender
Or lilac or daisy
Nor did I linger too long over the acres
Of dandelion, focused was I on your wet eyes
Somewhere over the next hill
Holding your hand in mine
My imagination kisses you three times
Deeply and then steps back a few feet
Just enough to gaze as the sunset glances
Through the tangle of your hair
The air was always fragrant in my breathing
In and out and my steps were firm, sure and
Paced, like a sturdy draught horse moves.
Days of painful walking, walking, walking
Passed like happy dreams, layers of dreams
Rising through the night as my body slept
The constellations were casting a portrait
Of your body, this star your hips, that cluster
Your lips, that glowing shape your smile
How could I be lost if my navigation was
Made simple? In all ways my journey was blest
Over the pines and juniper, the red winged
Black bird applauding in song my vigor
The gurgling streams such powerful veins
Of telluric measures, a lovely compass to keep
My steps on straight and sure routes
I am coming now my lovely, to take root in your
Arms, so strong are my breaths, each one closer
To you, a sailor of forests I have become, full
Sail I travel. I am almost lifted up above
Arboreal mats as I cascade my steps to your hearth
America should come undone, as I have lived
America should move on and heal, as I have died
There is no right or wrong
There is no right or wrong
Just leaves falling into swiftly moving water
There is no victor or vanquished
Just winds that blast dust into our eyes
There is no good or bad
Just so much blood leaking and flowing
There is no God that hears me and not you
Just that our ears are all tuned to the same thoughts
There is no right or wrong
Just the same widow, lonely child and empty chair
There is no way to undo what has been done
Just notice where your feet hit the river
There is no good bullet or proper hanging
Just the ebb and flow of common sorrows
There is no good slave or bad owner
Just mad ideas that each generation allows
There is no better or worse war or conflict
Just the illusion that our innocence is purer
There is no better time to take sides
Just notice where the tide is taking you
There is no cause that is better
Just listen to your own excuses
There is no right or wrong
Just a moment in the river
-->
Poem © 2004 Fred Houpt, all rights reserved
