YOURS FOR THE ASKING

YOURS FOR THE ASKING

I was lost and huddled in this makeshift life
When you caught me in my costume and gently unmasked me,
And my soul was hallowed territory, yours for the asking.

My life like a dark, musty cavern that stood in stark relief
When lit by the lantern-rich glow of your eyes
That banished my fear and grief.

The world a maze I’d navigate with hunger pangs of longing
‘til you found a way to fill the holes with your wisdom and your cunning.

I know that I’d be trapped and lost without the crumbs you’ve dropped for me.
The soft words whispered in my ear, your kind unending charity.

Saving me has been your mission since the day you burrowed past,
The fortress raised to keep you distant from the sands in my hourglass.

You dove into the wreckage like a fearless scavenger
To probe the briny depths of me, like a calm, well-seasoned mariner.

Driving the pearl from the oyster of my hapless soul
You met me on the ocean floor and charmed me with simpatico.

My life a stray pebble cast upon the sand
Found its home and resting place in the clasp of your gentle hand.

I was lost and shivering, quaking in my galoshes
When you caught me deep in my charade and gently unmasked me
And my soul was hallowed territory, yours for the asking.

-Bruce Potts
Copyright 2008
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED