This is for all the lonely people who aren't given a chance as if
God had plucked it out--nestled among cell bodies--leaving a hole,
and warping the rest so the world becomes magnificent,
then hollow
finding the hands of a child they know
they love yet cannot stay with holding childrens fingers
when there will be no good words to explain
all the reasons for the moment before a lifetime
when relief became a sudden human need long before their children were even born,
and salt had helped them pretend
seasoned--walled--blunted--weary
mere, human
The children do know they are loved by the saltless, the pooling,
the grass
And this is for all those still gravity-bound.
When lonely people have to leave,
a prayer and written excuse of absence in place of a held hand
Secretly we sent as much of our souls along with them
in hopes of safe travels, and company to a place
like the sound of the air above mountains
floating where the rest of us might find some time
unbound and elementless-
R.Barnes
9/22/04