Telomere

The work of a poet
if done right
must be somewhat brutal

The lines, like pairs wish to marry
they wind tight
the white of the page seems like a dream

I light a cigarette and watch the smoke
and wonder why so many think of divorce
in the time of cholera

Pablo Neruda, like Sandburg - understood
And such a strong man, the pieces of him breaking off
let you know that he, like myself is capable of love
and know the quiet happiness
of a well married man

They were exacting , and precise - no word out of place
Their women were dark and wild
When I close my eyes I see them holding their husbands close
and her soft, graceful hand
tracing the weathered features
of her man

I was born with a broken chromosone
no backup, an x and a y

And a piece of me will fall away
I will never be the same

But a piece of you broke off
and exploded in my heart
And I love you forever
Because you set me free