sweet on you

because time is an illusion and
love is infinite, i loved you before
i met you, and i’ll love you
after, too

we were kids together,
climbing trees without the 
fear of falling, and weighing down
our pockets with shiny rocks, not
yet thinking of what else that
weight could mean

and i loved you in the
way that only a child could,
way back then,
with all that i was and all that
i would one day become

do you remember that first time
you let me hold your hand on
the bus ride to school? what about
when i stood on tiptoe to press a
kiss to your cheek? did that feel
like a promise to you, too?

something in me aches when i
think of you, and it’s not just
because i’m clenching my jaw
hard enough to cause a tension
headache

pieces of you bleed through that
bittersweet melancholy, leftovers
from having loved, and not quite lost,
but more like not having the heart
to try and cage such a wild thing

so let’s roll up the cuffs of
our blue jeans, hands held to steady
each other, and wade into the
creek together, dappled in light
breaking through the trees from
a midday sun 

and i’ll pick flowers from the
bank to tuck into your long hair,
and you’ll smile just so,
just for me, and reach out
to take my hand again,
just because you can