December 31

(Things to Remember...
or Possibilites for the Future)

i

The giddy days of the year
   have ended
And the calendar has come
   to a screeching halt.

We have reached
A crossroads of possibilities:
   turning right into history––
   turning left into memory––

Or crashing across the barrier
   of time

Like barefoot cherubs
   on the freshly fallen snow.

ii

I have come to a point
   in my life
Where buying houses seems
   like playing Monopoly
And years have come to mean
   Go, Jail or Taxes...
Little more.

iii

It is late in the afternoon
   of the 31st-
I am paying my bills and
Keeping busy with
   final things

Like neatening my desk,
   worrying if my bed is made
If my shoes are scuffed––

The infinite unfinished trivialities
   of this nutsy-boltsy-erector-set-life.
iv

But of course, I am also thinking
   of you dear heart.
Of the laughter we might enjoy
   in our feathery pillow bed
Sharing words, dreams, and kisses
   between hugs
Sunday brunches and occasional journeys
   to the Mountains of the Moon.

v

Clocks are ticking-
   bells are clanging––
The calendar has tumbled off
   the wall-

Now is time for you
   to choose.

Come with me
   Be my forever friend––

We will dance
   like barefoot cherubs
On the freshly fallen snow.