words i wish i had reserved for my wife

on her name:

the way your name tastes

as it rolls off my tongue

the succulent slowness of caramel

dripping from my lips

a sweet whispered reverence

that leaves me breathless

craving more

on our facetime calls:

her words exhilarate the thirsty soul

like great gulps of some wild tonic

that ripples and tickles as it goes down

tiny fizzing bubbles that burst

fragrant, frothy clouds

of dahlias and daydreams

on our first kiss:

the night dripped stillness

i inhaled the silence

and your perfume

like the last breath of a diver

before the sea closes overhead

then your lips met mine

and the storm broke in all its fury

you claimed me for your own

and i dared not refuse

on reflection of our first year:

spring is your season

the coming to life of things

the exultation of rebirth

how i love to watch you blossom

rose-lipped and fresh

but you also know

how to hold summer captive

in the bronze honey of your eyes

and i am but a fuzzy bee

drawn irresistibly to the hive

then i see you fall into autumn

sparkling crisp and full of flame

sweeping burnished copper spiked with silver frost

a crown glorious

you wear November well

and you wrap that coat tighter

as winter sets in

but your December skin

invites me to sit at your hearth

drinking warmth

from your red wine tongue.

on falling in love with her:

i held you close

until i felt you seep between the cracks

and bleed your soul into min