The Bordeaux Grey

I like missing you

more than I like kissing you.

I don't believe in excessive slashes

and underscores.

I don't believe I was made for this moment yet

here I am.

I could be three times the charm and burn your tongue,

burn holes in your T-shirt,

burn your thoughts so you're always warm when

thinking of me.

I'm a mausoleum beneath the

watery edges of raw cement,

amidst a dented street.

Here I can pretend

sublimation is something I'm

entirely capable of doing

without fear in-between the lines.

Here I can pretend I can fold myself like

origami and hold metaphors

down like a paperweight.

 

I am sorry.

I wish I had shown you that

money isn't the only thing that can be given.

A hunched-over arch of defeat, I wondered

what it was you loved so much that you guarded it

with your entire vertebra.

I was too late to realise that loving the idea

of you and loving you wasn't the same,

down from ankle straps to your

icy cheeks,

I knew when the

tempest struck the calm like a

naughty child over the fingers of

the one moment powerful enough

to change the climate,

that the burn on your tongue will

bitter up like lemon juice.

 

Tingling flesh and memories crushed,

I was nothing but iodine, and you knew.

You knew that before you turned your head

to capture the small wind in the gale

of your subconscious, stirring it up

so no tear is left unshed, no bruise

left unfaded.

I crisscrossed between

the scars on my face and rust in your eyes but

I'd be damned if I let your wired frown

stop me because
I still liked kissing you more

than I liked missing you.

Reviews

[CS]

I can't tell you how much I love reading your work. Every poem is like a new surprise just waiting to catch me off guard. Every line of this, I found myself teetering between a smile and a frown. In the end, I just can't help but laugh. Kissing them is always going to win. Even if missing them is better sometimes.

Many pungent words capture my attention in this but it is the overwhelming feeling of closure that drives your point home. Some great poetry, to be sure.

[Little Birdie]

Bless you, truly. I agree, kissing them always wins, although missing them does create a certain melancholic atmosphere. And thank you so much. I'm beyond glad you've enjoyed it.

[Thomas Fitzgerald]

Kissing indeed and intimate act that guides one home, well done, good read.

[Little Birdie]

Thank you so much :)

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

Well written piece indeed. I love the feel and flow of this. There is a realness and modernity to your writing that is quite appealing. I will have to read more! :)

[Little Birdie]

Thank you!

[Michael Kevin Spencer]

Nobody can compare to Little Birdie's emotional power of expression.

"I don't believe I was made for this moment yet here I am."

This marks a return to your genius lyrics.

[Little Birdie]

In the end, all I needed was time and an inspiration. Thank you for believing in me. And thank you for the ever-present support and motivation when it comes to writing, and lovely reviews, of course. :)

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i see this from a totally different angle...

i see an abusive relationship..this person is much better to love from a distance, much safer to miss than kiss, because he or she is too volatile...

sometimes the idea of someone is better than the actual someone.

this write is terrific stuff...

i drank your poem like a fine wine.

jacob

[Little Birdie]

You're actually very close! I wouldn't call it an abusive relationship, but to some point a neglectful one. Knowing someone loves you, but not quite knowing how to love them back...and thank you so much! I'm glad you liked it :)