Once I Saw You Poem by Maple Trail

Once,
I saw you (almost) raise your hand
then smile toward me…
but I was already too far away to speak
or change
the way I ached for you.

later,
when we shared the porch
hidden from passersby
behind the fragrant plants
that you gave your heart to
rather than I -
ah, we were breathless then
yet lost even so.

Now,
when I pass your house
in the warm eventide,
I’m distracted by no stars
smell no perfumes,
have no time to spare
for feelings such as these.

But if you would raise your hand
time would unwind,
I would try to speak;
or stumble
or smile