I am sending you an Obtuse Kiss
It is coming to you
Not directly
But a little bit
Off to the side
It is coming to you
from where you can’t see it
but it can feel you
so you can’t hide
when it lands
on your ear, your nose, or your eye
even though it was meant
for your cheek
And if you are really liking it
I can send you an Oblique Kiss
In a week

I can’t think with my mask on
My senses have gone
Absolutely numb
I can’t tell when I am shopping
if I am buying a cucumber
or if it is just my thumb
I am tired of pretending to smile
When I am really not
And you would think the
Virus would get the message
And go away

I understand that they don’t go swimming
They are afraid they will drown and float away
So I think the safest place for me
Is at the beach today.

I was confused
So I just explained it to myself
in a way I could understand
It was in my operator’s manual but
in the confusion
it wasn’t very clear
But since I went back into the moment
(that means I was there and not here)
the cloudiness is clearly clear
So nevermind
No explaining needed in the self induced ether
of my stratosphere.

Someone gave me this book of poems
It reminded me of you
The time we once had
The things we used to do
But all these things are all
passed now
Now there is
you and me
to talk
and remind each other of the
time

Reach into the past
to remind me of the
things I like to do
like walking on the beach
with the sea so blue
to take away all
the fears and half truths of today
reach into the past and use it
for today

Drifting off into the dark abyss
of blessed sleep
The rhythm of the wind
is my lullaby
as I close one eye
and keep the other watching
as the stars come out
from their hiding place
in the sky

I felt there were some wanderings
around that were happening
last night
But knowing it was not me
was enough
to not want to turn on the light
If it was me
I would have to ask
What was I doing up
feeling in a wandering kind of way
And then I would have to answer
And what would I say
There is no really kind of answer
one can give for that kind of thing
in the middle of the night
even to one’s self.

Wandering is best
left as one
And the rest of us
should should just
roll over and go to sleep

I followed the instructions
Word for word
I really truly did
It was really quite easy
I figured I would try it
at least once
to see if I could

And then I hit a snag

All the instructions suddenly
became a blueprint for
all the ingredients
I didn’t have

So once again
if you ask me
how I made it
taste so good

Well I did follow the instructions
But as you know
A little improvisation
is what makes it good