the navigator

The navigator loves maps
And I love having a navigator.
That the navigation is imperfect
Doesn’t matter.

I enjoy the simple pleasure
Deciding upon our destination together
Letting you consult your maps and determine our route
Letting you take control of these decisions.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m an active participant.
I talk to the navigator about where we are going.
I offer my help as we find our way.
We make the trip together.

Since the navigation is handled
I am free to pay attention to other things.
I am interested in what the navigator is feeling.
I ask personal questions.

Not everyone will answer such questions.
The navigator trusts me.
We are beginning to make a relationship.
There are some wrong turns and corrections.

Today we take the long way around
Which is not so far, anyway,
Except for stepping through so many puddles,
And being a little lost for awhile.

There we see the display of the entire city
Every building in miniature
People would be the size of period dots.
We are two lives among millions.

The journey we are making has taken many years.
We have each had our own false steps and dead ends.
We’re not exactly sure of the final destination,
But a welcome companion feels so right.

lake skenonte

a good person

Trying to be a good person
That’s the way you describe yourself
As we go through the doorway
To where we sit facing each other.

I like looking in your eyes.
You look back and then look away
Letting me look for a moment
Like a brief touch.

I am not given to easy trust
Yet this is so easy to do with you
I gladly give myself over
Certain you are gentle and kind.

Who knew the passion underneath?
This is all unexpected
The surprise of a lifetime.
What I don’t see coming finds a way in.

You were always a good person.
Me, too. We know this.
We know a lot of where we’ve been
And what we’ve done. It’s a given.

But years later you have gotten better with age.
You are a better person now.
I see it in the way your face has improved.
I see less conviction but more empathy there now.

“Relationships are important.”
That could be your slogan these days.
I agree. That speaks to me.
And I see we are a real possibility.

I have a lot to give.
You have a lot to give.
We are worthy of each other.
We can do this.

once around the cabin