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On the Riverboat That Day
by Sharmagne Leland-St. John

I remember you
so clearly
on the riverboat
that day
with the sun
behind your fair hair
like a halo

as we slipped past
the water falls
as droplets of spray
enhanced the air
then danced
on the red lacquered
posts and rails
reflecting rainbows
in your blue eyes
and wetting the green vinyl seat
beside us

You wore a delicate smile
for the camera
or perhaps
from the memory
of the last night
we spent together
a tapestry
of arms and legs
woven together
between the tangled sheets
the bamboo fields
singing in the night breeze
accompanied by the whisper
of palm fronds swaying
playing a summer symphony

When "you" and "me" was  still "we"

Now we have gone
our separate ways
you to your ranch in the high desert
surrounded by purple mountains
and foreign night sounds
coyotes and buzzards,
insects
clicking in the dark


and I back to the canyons
I know so well
the hum of traffic
reminiscent of ocean waves
pounding against a distant shore
crickets chirp in harmony
bird song at dawn
as sunlight filters
through the sentinel of trees
I am reminded 
of your halo hair
and the smile
you wore
on the river boat
that day
as we drifted
so far apart

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