**published in The Quixote 1996, Schertz, TX
now I am Real
i tried to follow you
where you went
but i wasn't sure which way to go.
you just
became
f a r a w a y.
i reached out
like a child catching sunbeams --
you slipped through my fingers.
i encircled you in my arms
i cared and listened
i did everything right . . .
but you left.
finally
i stopped
i waited
i cried
yet you never returned . . .
thank you.
