We Meet So Briefly

a poem of dwelling

Costa’s hummingbird, image © the author

We meet so briefly, at right angles,
Brushing like a shoe against the curb.
Now, clouds dwell in the sun; my heartbeat
Rests in sun-carved soil, in green leaves
Where honey’s gleaned from lavender,
In passing weightlessness of hummingbirds;
I dwell like clouds in sunlight, passing
Day by day, dissolving to return.
But you and I, we meet so briefly,
Eyes meet eyes and lips form words
That pass without a trace of honey,
No sunlight and no heartbeat.
Give me the passing of the hummingbirds.