Dear Universe,

It was the morning of yet another day. Dressed in my garden work clothes, no makeup and hair pulled back in a ponytail I sat drinking my fruit smoothie in the garden. Shortly thereafter my husband joined me with his coffee. We sat sharing a few minutes of morning silence and then, out of the blue, he looked at me and said "You KNOW how much I love you". Well, blame it on my big Sagittarian mouth and a tendency to speak before thinking but I casually blurted out "not really". I could see he was surprised but as I was preparing to trim the trees and bushes my mind was preoccupied. And so, I stood up and began my work.

While trimming, I thought to myself..."this man's timing is SO off but nonetheless, he does love me". During the days that followed, I found myself reflecting on just how different from most he really is. Completely unconventional, unpredictable, perplexing, intelligent, hilarious, oblivious, introverted, surprisingly sentimental, and, all too often, completely lost in his own world of thought. In retrospect, I realize how much it is those same characteristics along with his smile that attracted me to him in the first place. Honestly speaking, a nice, easy-going, predictable guy would never have captured my attention as I enjoy a good challenge. The point I want to make is that it is so easy to forget why we love someone especially after thirty years of marriage and so, I am grateful for the opportunity to reflect.

My husband is a gifted artist in every essence of the word and he fills my world with color and form! My greatest joy is watching him create! Time and time again, I am a witness to his creativity and can say with certainty that his mind takes him to places that most of us will never understand. He is in no way ordinary and not interested in trivial matters of day to day life. Sometimes, after so many years together, I forget that about him. He can be difficult, distant, challenging and self indulgent to a fault. Yet, within a moments time he can change all that and say something with such innocence and sincerity that I cannot help but love him.

Life is a roller coaster ride taking us up and down and sometimes leaving us a bit dizzy, and still, there in the midst of it all my husband said he loved me and for no apparent reason other than he wanted me to know. He is my soulmate for better or worse; he is my light in a sometimes very dark world. I will never love another as I love him.

I thank you for bringing us together and giving me the opportunity to love and to be loved.

Sincerely,

justanotherpoet

a blur of iridescent light

sparkles aquamarine

the world above blurred by a shield

censoring a traumatic scene

a ship, a boom, a fiery blaze

muffled shouts in the air

now i sink down to indigo depths

that statured sailors beware

the death, claustrophobia

difficult to comprehend

as i escape the light of the world i once knew

my life closing to a tragic end

the clock

struck

midnight &

they were gone.

running and smiling and loving

the air

finally, a pure breath

after years

of the girl’s mistreatment

& the boy’s lack of freedom.

beauty:

the air that twirled around their one soul.

as they were dancing in the ballroom,

her dress was shifting back into rags

before it even struck midnight.

nerves firing her heart,

she thought it was over.

she assumed he wouldn’t care for such a poor girl.

so she cried in his ear,

i’m cinderella.

smiling, he said,

& i’m the prince.

all that mattered was their love.

so they fled,

kissing & holding hands.

but right before they ran down the steps,

she paused.

& this time,

his nerves were the ones overpowering.

she reached her arm to his shoulder for support

as she

kicked off

her glass slippers