terry provost

Atonceness

How easy it is to forget,
or more nearly to learn
to ignore the at-onceness of feeling:
as for example, you.
In bed, at night,
in a dark room, even when I can't
see, it is there in the warmth I discover,
already present. And then,
along the length of me,
hip to shoulder, arm
to shin, the smooth bodyheat
reminding of how many places I am
simultaneously. Just a soft touch,
and skin revealing something I was too stupid
even to dream when I was too all-alone
to forget myself, and just be ---
ready for something beyond
and free
with someone like you.

Terry Provost