(after gwendolyn brooks)
for C
i used to think there were only two
options for people like me, we who
are foreign where we are local. are
there other options than this? mostly
death seemed preferable. then a good
day became a good year. then: you. two
become one or two linked or two who
make the other more than whole. i have
dreamed of you my entire life, lived
with you as my one well of hope. their
eyes track for a moment of our day;
let them keep the moment alone but
not us. our love is not theirs to keep.
they don’t see us—how you turned me on
to being at home at home, putting
my pride on my sleeve and our love on
my soul. they say it can’t be done, their
limits and ignorance worn like clothes.
you can always go home again, and
happily; ignore their off-putting.
darlin’, these are the things
that cannot be taken away.