sunburn - the only remnant of you -
and I smile to peel it away.

You were my infatuation
my love
my golden calf
worshipped and adored
as I lay prostrate and humbled
at your feet.
But I raised my eyes to your majesty
in time to catch the last breaths
of your modesty and kindness,
as a self-satisfied grin
stretched across your face
in a royal proclamation,
a divine decree:
You nodded slightly,
amused by your own heavenly inspiration
that "Indeed, this is
exactly as it should be."
But no skyfire
could ever melt the ice in your eyes
that day
burning my stiff, bare back.
And no frozen glare
could make my insides cold.

So finally free of my sinful,
two-year idolatry,
I smile at the moon and shed my skin
and all trace of your touch,
making penance to the stars.

08/21/2000

Posted on 10/26/2001
Copyright © 2025 Meredith C Hartwell