Torch Song: A Lover's Lament

I wait, having died a thousand deaths, breathless and lifeless,
disappearing in your light, having rent my skin in mourning,
For the day you would come, the storied hero, my savior,
when you would bid me, “rise” and in speaking, recreate me,
For you to say, “come,” reviving me in our reunion.

I know you, wear you like my own existence, the glow within my soul,
These embers of desire a reminder of your past presence;
I remember you well, time was when I was you and you were me,
the boundaries between the two never known or long gone,
after having seen you only once before, yearning for an eternity of you and your beauty.

Wounding me with your strength, the tendrils of life you offer
instead destroy me with their thorns of mystery;
My lover, my life, sweet nectar of intoxication –
Before the glory of you, light pales, flames become invisible, the merest wisps of air,
And there is nothing left but me, impassioned, swallowed by love.

Though you are man, and have not the wings of angels,
You are still the favorite of God, and mine as well,
Having ascended to astounding heights with blinding brilliance,
Shimmering with the light of heavens angels never see.

I just wanted to see your face, and having done so,
there is no place for me except beside you.
My heart is broken, but glad and lovely in its sadness;
still I chase you barefoot through the burning sands,
If only for a last glimpse, to bask in your reflected smile.

Emboldened, I write verses for you, hoping that my words will reach you,
Wanting that our hearts should touch, igniting a spark deep inside yours.
With a poet’s magic, I sing, that my love serve as a remembrance,
A torch in the empty night to bring you home.