SHE: Poem 4 –
“she asks of me” (circa ’85)
she asks of me
to leave my Walkman off
so i actually hear
her laughter drifting by
she asks of me
to lend my neon shades
when the sun’s
too bright for shy smiles
she asks of me
to stash my mixtape lineup
and trade dance
in the arcade’s strobe
she asks of me
to call her on the payphone—
no excuses about
dead quarters or fear
she asks of me
to slip on my roller skates
and keep pace with hers
around the rink
she asks of me
to admit my favourite song—
not hide it behind
a Rubik’s-cube of cool
she asks of me
to crack my shell wide open
and toss in a beat of honesty
and i’m learning—
one neon heartbeat at a time—
how to answer every one
of her lighted asks.
.