five years

 thru five years

we've danced daringly with many

diverse partners

crept thru bedroom windows of 

a few starched spirits

and spilled a few

tears of our own

after five years

kids become searching adults,

your face remains soft and warm

and my hands remain calloused but curious

(a learning, yearning, burning process

breathing Spring,

simmering Summer

fearless Fall)

in five years

it appears:

some dreams last longer than others

and life's road turns faster with eyes open

as it rolls on revealing (with a

wink) that some cycles and hearts

remain synchronized, and that dance steps 

echo softly and that i love you still.

douglas brent smith