A Man, Coming of Age
By nancy_am
- 1175 reads
you
a young boy,
hand held in a mother's tight grip -
playing hide and seek
when least expected
followed by hours of searching
because you never knew
when the game should end
hiding
in dark corners
giggling at thoughts
of the smile
on her face
when you reappeared
never understanding
relief etched in her forehead
the corners of her mouth
her, hiding anxiety
in dark corners of a heart
that never learned
how not to love
walking past a couple
lips meeting
for that kiss-hello
kiss-goodbye
kiss-I-missed-you
kiss-I-love-you
and you ask,
'What are they doing?'
and she
unlike other mothers
in the same situation - flustered
brushing over innocence
with thick white paint
she answers plainly
painting varnish over words,
'They are falling in love'
you
a young boy,
your name
written
in a child's scrawl
on wooden floors -
you would have carved it out
if you could
but a mother's concern
would not let you go that far
you did not know then
what you should know now -
you will not be forgotten
you
a young man
hands held tightly together
you're all but
holding yourself together
you've fallen
hit rock bottom
and still
you seem to drift
downwards
in love lost
that lasts longer
than the loving itself
remembering
the moments that were
of kisses that ended all too soon
remembering
the moments that should have been
of words never said
on days forgotten
remembering how clouds hung
over a sky pregnant with rain
that it would not release
as you kissed her goodbye
with thoughts of ever-after
playing in your mind, like a broken record
and she walked away, her back to you
you, watching her every move
wishing she would turn
etch your face in her mind
but she does not
as you etch the nape of her neck
the curve of her back
and your mother's words, 'They are falling love'
in your mind -
and curse your memory
you
a young man,
your name
written
in a stranger's handwriting
on a brown manila envelope
a stranger who wants to be anything but
separated
by an ocean
that has been crossed
many times over
but never
for the same reasons
you do not know
what you should know now -
you will not be forgotten.
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