It has a ruthless clarity,
An uncompromising sense of direction
And a stunningly beautiful candidness
As persuasive as the sharp edge of a knife
On bare skin.
No partial measures,
No “almost there”s
No “just about”s.
No destinations that are kind of within reach.
You are there,
Or there is nowhere to go.
No occasional suns,
Half-cloudy skies.
It is an abundance of blue,
Or no air to breathe.
No whispering,
No cautiously worded statements of support.
You speak the shamelessly lucid idiom of love
In the loudest scream your vocal cords can afford,
You give all you are,
Or keep your nothing to yourself.
St. Louis, Feb. 12, 2001