Unconditional

intuitively, you took my hands
at a moment of emotional intensity
you held them
without reservation
or shame

many moons later
your willingness, kindness and authenticity
sustain me
& I live in the warmth of knowing
what it means
to have someone
who's got my back

Santana

Woodstock is 40 years old.
As an event, it remains almost absurdly mythic.
As music, it remains unforgettable.
As a semiotic, it remains
as dangerous &
compelling
as ever.

Aziza

sweet attentiveness
at the heart of your noticing
a tenderness of embodied memory
I can almost see
the soft smile
you must have felt
playing about your face
as you beheld
a cherished moment
and just when I could not
imagine
loving you more
I do

Trust

you allow yourself to be
vulnerable
knowing that I will not use that against you
ever
as precious as love
and perhaps even more
rare and remarkable

August One

a year ago today
we did a similar dance
much less lifting
but no less moving
closer to earth
than to sky
trees nearby
instead of all around
the necessary consolation of leaves
a place to be
alone with your own thoughts


I knew then--as I know now--that proximity
in and of itself
is not presence or connection
No...it is the small kindnesses
how your footfall is familiar
your unhurried gestures
a language of the heart
inhabiting space and time
clearings of always there
always
risking authenticity
the only dance
there
is