May 2, 2023 - “Promise” by Rahil Najafabadi

PROMISE

There are only a few seconds in each doorway,
meant for different things––to say goodbye and wave,
to decide whether to touch or tear the flowers,
and to quickly leave the room of hesitation. The candle
of my emotion is lit by my hope. When light strokes
the mountain, the rivers turn golden. Not every embrace
makes the Earth spin. When I want to dance and move,
my house turns into a knot of wood and linen. I can sleep
on the bed of my promises. It’s still warm from knowing
I will wake up from this kiss, that our dream is also alive
like us, and that I am not in a death spiral with everything
I own. Dip your thoughts into the fire, but the wallflower
doesn’t turn to the sun everyday. Once the cooler light is here,
the petals drift with the summer, and I’m once again near you.