So You Like Me Huh? Poem by Lonnie Hicks

It was not that I loved her
I loved that she loved me;
it was a guilty feeling;
something like a drug;
I enjoyed the attention
reassured that my true love
would come along some day
and her attraction to me was the gentle light
which would make me visible enough
for future love to see me in the dimly lit future.

It was not fair to her and I told her one day.
'You make me feel special and I like that'
I said 'but I also feel guilty because in feeling
this way I feel I am cheating you
of the love you deserve.'

'I know' she said
'You know? ' I said
'Sure, it makes me feel good that
you feel good from what I do with you.
I am not cheated.
Love? No.
I am just practicing being a good person
and like you I am waiting
for my true love to come along some day.
But every day with you, I am practicing not only
to love but also how to be a friend. Friend in the long run
is what is left after the passion wans
and it lasts a life time.'
'You are very smart.' I said.
'No, ' she said 'just trying it on for size.'