I’m 40-years-old
standing over a sink
steam rising
as it fills with hot water
I’m with a girl
someone I recently met
I offered to do the dishes
so out of character
but I wanted to impress
as she invited me over for dinner
great meal
great evening
great face
great smile
been several decades
since I’ve been a teenager in love
but I am smitten again
I recognize the giddy feeling
I plunge into the suds
searching the hot water
for another plate
we are deep in conversation
I love talking with her
love hearing her laugh
love her great green eyes
love her velvet skin
I love her
it’s true
I’m falling in love
like some school kid
and at my age
but the feeling is intoxicating
how nice it is again
to feel this fresh
this innocent
this energized
so taken by another
just then
her voice calls from the other room
lifts me from my daydream
I am still at the sink
my hands in hot water
but now
in our home of many years
I look through the archway
to where she sits on our sofa
I hear the tv
she’s watching “Blade Runner”
I hear Deckard’s voice
“I don’t know why he saved my life.
Maybe in those last moments
he loved life
more than he ever had before.”
I certainly love life
and I love her
her skin
not quite velvet any longer
but her smile
still captivating
I’m still soothed by her voice
still love spending time with her
even now
how much time
do we have left together
who knows
but certainly time enough
to finish these dishes
and then
who knows…
rob kistner © 2019