Behind the heavy velvet curtain of the night
Littered with hundreds of flickering flames
I stand isolated in the footlights
Everyday a new performance; a new tragedy
As the curtains rise I see the familiar faces
Of the past; the present
I see his face scattered throughout the crowd
Not fully understanding how he can inhabit so many places in time
A dance begins
Slowly and fluidly moving through the scenes of my existence
The fears, hopes and dreams of a child
He catches my eye – or did I catch his?
The way we did so long ago
Before we knew the outward beauty of the other’s face
Something in his quiet smile draws me in
I lose a step as I touch an image in my mind
My longing does not seem to survive alone
I can see it in his eyes as I catch his stare
The aching for what never was
Suddenly to startlingly apparent
Time has shifted in a way not unlike the sands of the desert
We have remained; a constant in the ever-changing landscape
The lights have gone down and the sea of faces
Filters out into the crisp air of night
I follow his shadow hastily out the door;
Down the lane
He cannot see me
Wanting to call out to him
But I seem entangled in mystifying silence
I want to remind him of the fateful night
The hap-hazard meeting of the minds
The inspiration he lent my soul
My worldly cares slid down a tiny stream
Into the depths of presumed eternity
In the fire driven passion of our thoughts
We became one in the spirit of imagination
Our time abbreviated by the same invisible momentum
Which intertwined us that day
My heart has endured though my mind wanders
Continuously through supposed rationalization
He does not see me
Cannot see my tears
Has never seen my heart break when his did likewise
Madness seems to take control
I fall back
Behind the velvet black curtain of the night
The flickering lights go out
He will not see me
Until we meet again
In the silent desperation
Of my dreams
Joanne Cousins ©
