Perhaps the sanest

love affair of all

is the one I am

having with myself.

I love taking me on

moonlit walks

as I braid lavender through

my own long hair at dusk.

When I climb into bed, I ask:

‘Need anything love?’

And always, the answer:

‘I have everything I need’

comes back to me,

and I know I mean it.

Unwaveringly.

All night I spend wrapped

around my own silent dreaming;

effulgent and luminous

cupping the face of my beloved

in my own warm hands.

In the morning I make coffee

quietly, just the way I know I like it

and bring it back to myself in bed.

Loving the attention

drinking in the devotion.

Often, I know what I’m thinking

just before I’ve thought it

and smile knowingly at myself

nestling down further into the warmth

of such simple comforts.

On the weekends

I buy myself fresh flowers, and -

as I throw away the wilting

ones, I might shower myself with a

prism of petals

pretending I’m at a wedding

where every bird, leaf and beast is

a guest.

Smiling, applauding,

approving of this union, which,

of course, they are.

I stand there,

beaming, thanking my lucky star

for this inexplicable treasure:

the exquisite pleasure

I have found -

in loving

and being loved -

by my favourite person

in the world.

Liat Lev. Nov 2024