A Tender Reprieve

I am naïve about relationships and kisses, About the dreams that weave themselves Around a fragile heart, And I do not know how to protect Myself from love. Emotional before photographs of you, I break like pottery to see you smile, I crumble like autumn leaves In a child’s hand To remember your shimmering brown hair And the perfection of your neck That someone else touches. And I have also lingered lost in thought About the lighter brown hair of another girl Who captivated me for a moment, but less excruciatingly: I nearly fell in love with your best friend To merely hear her speak your name; No one will ever understand how much Those lovely vowels and consonants mean to me. I need to be granted a tender reprieve From the languishing agony of not seeing you, To be set free from the prison of sunless days Where perfume no longer lingers upon a pillow, Where flowers fail to form beautiful bouquets Because I don’t know the way to bring them to you.