The Exchange Poem by Stan Petrovich

With nothing left to lose
I went high and far into nameless
Mountains, climbing a high hill,
And, exhausted, fell asleep in a lush park.
I awoke enveloped in a kind of mist
That somehow spoke in my head:
'I want what you have: bones,
Manly muscles, blood and pliant gravity.
'You want what I have: flight, freedom and eternal life.
'Say the word and we can switch.'
Barely considering an answer, I spoke into the fog, agreeing 'yes' to it.

Now for sixty years and more I have
Swirled among spires in canyons,
Overlapped evergreen forests, hugged
Lush parks, at times frightening campers.
Then you came along,
Strumming a guitar that caught my fancy.
I saw your beaded hair and your fashion glasses and
Your shapely female form;
I enveloped you:
I whispered into your ear:
'I have a proposition to make.'