Once a week at Sinda class
You and I would meet
Timing our trips to the water cooler
To sip and whisper nothings
You would say something clever
Minutes, hours, and years later
I'd be rehearsing what I should have said instead of standing goldfish mouth agape
You slipped me a note one sweet Tuesday
Wanna go steady? You scrawled.
I nodded, my two plaits bobbing in time
I floated home that day
I lay on my pillow, smiling into air
Rehashing the note and nod all night
When I woke I wanted to shout out loud
I'm not who I was yesterday morning now!
And we went steady
We courted for two years
just smiling at each other at the water cooler
The occasional walk home together
Palms near but never touching
The other's words echoing in our ears all the way home
The little gifts at Valentine's day
A tune up piano
I still cherish today
At 17, I met another
Daring and bold
I wanted to hold his hands
But first... I had to break the fragile bind that held us still
That Valentine's day, our annual date
We exchanged gifts
You pronounced your unending love in a card
I gave you a "this isn't working" letter
A note to start and a note to end it all end it all
My chaste first crush
I see you now with your two kids
As I tow my two along
Life has surely moved on
Our romance as fleeting and pleasing
As a rainbow in a cloudy sky
So sweet because it lasts only so long
You will ever be my gentle first crush, So long.
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