beasts

January 25, 2011

beasts

we began in the air,

at the top of the mountain,

skis poised for a moment

at the very edge of that narrow trail.

but then ready-set-go we flew down,

reckless, careless,

yelling laughing taunting down

as the wind whipped our bare faces raw,

and at the end,

our bodies each tucked tight under,

you would somehow always win. 

we never noticed how close we came

to the trees,

to the edge.

we would still be gasping, grinning

as the chairlift freed our feet from the earth,

until the air around us was only filled

with the quiet vision of our exhalations

our chests would still throb

with hushed rabbit-breathing as, always,

his head tilted carefully to the side

and rested on my shoulder. 

a soft snowfall brushed, stung, numbed our cheeks;

our blue eyes stared straight ahead;

our mouths said nothing. 

we both watched

as the peak of the mountain approached us,

as it always did.

we each wished silently

never again to touch our skis

to the slick, steep ground.

if only we could have stayed in the sky

forever.