by Bennett Taylor

Last night I cruised around Saturn again.
Smoke and mirrors slowed light
Enough that I could catch it.
In the haze I felt your presence.
Sharp and vivid, without image.
I spoke to silence and it listened
But unasked questions go unanswered.

The world is ageless and distance nonexistent
From the driver’s seat of a vehicle without destination.
I revisit our few memories in endless new places.
Yesterday: A Blockbuster video in Haiti.

This travel diary grows with every imagined route.
Fueled by delusion I get more miles to the gallon.
If we both believed in fiction, we could go any direction.
North, South, East, West, maybe even Forward and Back.

Dreams mean nothing in retrospect
Unless they drive the will to act.
The myth that love could transcend time
Sent me flying toward the sunset.

Now, with words, I build new wings.
Like sand, they crumble in my hands.
In patience, or madness
I’ll gather what’s left.

With improved design
I’ll build them from scratch.
Tomorrow I won’t be travelling alone.
Your echo is better than no you at all.
When I crack these windows, out you will go
And I’ll drive this old car
Somewhere new.