Cold Shower

Rain mixes with the afternoon gloom,

gurgling and sputtering in gutters,

puddling in our uneven sidewalks.

Waterlogged limbs spit old leaves

onto the ground below,

adding them to the tangles

of dirty sticks and branches,

while storm drains grumble baritone complaints

from the side of the road.

My shoes have soaked through.

Rain droplets on my glasses

shatter and refract the dingy street lamp light

into something captivating.

Having you here

fractures my fantasy of you

into something real,

but somehow more difficult 

to accept as reality.

I've idolized you, and am unsure

how to conflate that

with casual affection. 

Reviews

[barleygirl]

WOW! WOW! And WOW! Your honesty is so refreshing & startling! This is the best I've ever heard it put, how it can be quite difficult to be spending facetime with someone after spending a lengthy time knowing each other online, where interactions can be crafted & edited. Real life & getting to know a real person is so much harder than that! Your opening scene of rivulet/leaf entanglement is well done & a great analogy. The verse about refracting drops is also brilliantly stated to further your point. I love how the ending isn't defensive, just pure lovely honesty. (((HUGS))) Fondly, Margie

[Ben Taylor]

Looking back at some older poems, and your reviews really cheered me up -- thank you, Margie. :)