To Behold and be held

I watch you walk away
with short strides, posters
and supplies thrust under your arm

the gentle curve of your back,
your body’s ode to the ocean,
caught riding a permanent wave

and I become aware of the boy
who tugged at his mother’s skirts
in shyness, the one who has searched

six decades to find a woman
to hold him, to envelop him
in quiet assurance

I want to take the kiss
you placed on my lips
and give it back to you

tenfold in all of the forlorn
corners of your mind, 
pull the cobwebs from 

memories that gave up
waiting for an ear, 
and give them both of mine

I want to take the hand
you held to my face
and give it back to you

in cradled comfort,
find the sound of your silence
with lips pressed to lines

and arms ready to wrap around
feelings that are finally
free to surface for air

I want to see and hold you deeply

until the boy is full for the first time,
until your blue eyes close,
until peace overtakes 

the ocean wave and you
lie flat against me
your essence affirmed