While I busily run my hands through my hair
And adjust the cufflinks one last time,
I hear the door creak open
And turn my eyes skyward
As your slender ankle breaks into view.
When I finally catch your eyes -
The last thing to hit my chest
After cradling the vision of you -
I find myself wanting to reach for
The breath escaping me
But I don’t want to drop
This bundle of grace and
Beauty; I don’t want to lose
This memory. My sampaguita,
Arabian Jasmine - a nickname
Our grandchildren would have
Thought ironic. The National Flower
But my personal treasure.
A gift that I can’t imagine deserving
But, then, love doesn’t quite work that way,
Right? I see in that look,
Confident, proud, tender, and
Maybe (hopefully?) a hint of the nerves
That are running like a livewire through me.
I see, here, a future vast and infinite.
I feel like I’ve just kissed eternity.
Tricycle in Manila. 2019. Photo Credit: AJ Joven