time
just a location in space
that keeps you in line
puts you in place
take some off
it takes your place
ticks you off
shapes your face
makes you late
consumes your days
makes you nervous
makes you wait
takes you out
takes itself
offers wealth
exchanges health
for similies
and nurse's smiles
and promises
to stay a while

you are the vowels
that used to dance round these walls
the towels we shared
the midnight calls that lasted hours
the silence we found
the voice in the shower I can't quite
make out

you're the sandalwood mist
perfuming the air
at the tip of my tongue
the ghost of a prayer
from long ago
pervading my skin
resurrected in debonair sin

you're the long dark hair
on the nightclub dance floor
the black underwear
on the king size headboard
the trips to Venus
through sunset plains
brighter than ever
in the rear view pane

I sleep with the window open
so in the night
hope might float in