Spring, Upon Us

Spring is upon us 
By a thin sliver of brightly colored pie
Can you believe? Spring bleeds into nearly everything, 
Launched into motion like a freshly born
Marsh grasshopper, wide-winged and migratory

Spring is among the nearby patch of melted snow
Within an unbuttoned jacket 
Between an unknotted tie

Surely, something tender and
Magical is about to unspool
In the coming months  

Litter me with the insults that let me know you care, 
That you truly, deeply care 

I want to knock our heads back to slurp 
The savory oyster, 
Shuck the spines open to taste the brine 

As we tread carefully and restlessly 

And I am sure that nothing, nobody, 
Can recreate the sweetness we cradle in 
Our time-speckled hands 

The flower bouquets a silent affirmation, 
Morning whispers an observant prayer, 

Flushed cheek
Downward-facing smiles 
Untimely giggles, 
Letters scribbled with want and need 

Surely, something whimsical will sprout from 
The riverbed 
Bending the wind like classic reeds or violin strings, 

We bend with it, too