Reason enough to love you.
Reason Enough to Love You
The night my mama called–a Thursday night–
which meant, certainly, something was wrong,
you took my hand, sitting there on the bed
not interrupting while she told jokes and
I laughed and I told jokes and she laughed,
both of us trying to cry so soft, maybe
the other one could pretend not to hear.
You took my hand and held on tight while
my tears ran down your shoulder and mama
told another joke in my left ear.
You didn't make me explain, just held me
and took away some of the fear of dying.
The day they were shouting my name,
everyone looking at me like I was crazy
or had forgotten somehow to dress right
like all those nightmares from my childhood
you put your hand on my neck and squeezed
stayed close to me stayed close
and put your fear in another place.
And that morning when I woke up crying
not able to say why, it could have been anything,
any of ten good reasons to just lay back and cry,
you slid over and put your whole body over mine
gently, your hand in my hair, your mouth on my ear,
wrapping silence and love and the muscles of your
thighs
all around me and let me cry let me cry
like no one ever let me before.
Dorothy Allison
My thanks to Allyson McDuffie for sending me this poem.
And so the Poemapalooza continues.
