I’m So Glad To See You

The band was loud and chaotic
As the darkness of the warm
Summer evening fell
Over the drunken crowd
In the parking lot of the bar.

We forgot the lights, they shouted,
Playing in near darkness.
The audience cheered,
Writhing and gyrating in ways
They’d been containing all week.

I stood at the edge, under a tree,
Part and not part as I always am.
A woman I knew slightly
Flitted through the crowd, and I
Envied her lightness,
While guarding my separateness fiercely.

Once, as she darted past,
Her eyes caught mine and she stopped.
Her face surprised then pleased
In a way I never would have predicted.

In the center of the noise and chaos,
She placed a hand high on my waist
And pulled me close. Hello, she said.
I’m so glad to see you. She looked
Me fully in the face, both of us past our best,
But in the darkness and heat and wildness
Of that evening, we were beautiful.

She quickly moved on, but
The impression of her hand remained.
Like a mark. Like an imprint. Like a blessing.
This morning, several days later,
I can feel it still.
As if I’m tethered to the
World that gathers at night
In the summer. To drink and
Dance and hum with frenetic belonging.