Paradise

I sit
in Paradise
warm wind
flowing
across my crimsoning skin
sound of waves
crashing
on the perfect beach
rhythmically massaging
my soul
Content.

And still
I think of you
and somehow feel
even more so.
Surrounded by barely clothed
beautiful women
I don't forget you
but instead
think of you more
wish that you were here
in their place
realize
I would gladly trade them all
for you
to be here
laying in the warm sun
smiling at me.

Blind sided
by this feeling
I barely know you
but I know
something
sets you apart
something
makes me not
want to look
further
makes me smile
thinking of you.

I could be wrong
about all of this
the path may lead
to nowhere
just as before.
But I can't
won't
be afraid
I have to try
to know.
Though it could
break my heart
it could be
Paradise.

You could be dead tomorrow

You could be dead tomorrow
I repeat this mantra
often
because I need to remember

I need to remember
the feeling that can only be known
when one tastes the
the cold cruelness
of imminent death
yet still lives

The first time
I felt it
at the icy steel end
of a shotgun barrel
like a flash
my fragile mortality
laid bare before me

But it was too fast
too traumatic
the memory
too painful
I could not remember

The second came slowly
like a death row inmate
desperately awaiting a pardon
for what seemed a lifetime
it arrived
not from a governor
but from cancer

And I remember
the feeling
was the same
as before

The feeling where
you realize
nothing else matters
but this moment
that the past no longer exists
and the future may never

The fear
of anything
everything
melts away
Blood rushes back into
your soul
white hot
and fierce

Your senses explode
into sharp focus
as the world opens up its secrets
anything
and everything
yours for the taking

It is at this moment
you know
you feel
with every aspect of your being
what it means
to be alive

You could be dead tomorrow
I need to remember
to stay alive
today

Next to you

I lay in your bed
awake before you
your head gently cradled
in my arm
as you lay next to me.
My eyes trace the profile
of your generous curves
moving from your dark lovely locks
along the nape of your neck
up to the soft white peak
of your small shoulder
down to the luscious valley
of your waist
lingering briefly
before eagerly sliding up
to the beckoning round fullness
of your hip
and finally falling down
the length of your leg.
I think of a million reasons
I shouldn't be here
with you
of all the differences
the seemingly vast chasm
separating
our souls
I wonder
what you see in me
when you know so little
of me
I imagine that you see
all that you found good
in every former lover
and none of what you found bad
and I know that you are wrong.
Then I remember
as I wrap myself around you
pulling you close
All of these thoughts mean nothing
as I cant deny
how I feel
waking up
when you're next to me
as if nothing else
even existed
let alone mattered
there is only
here
and now
this beautiful
timeless
moment.

Wonder Full

I sit defeated by this busy day
The computer monitor is sharp
Demanding
It is breaktime though
I pull out a grapefruit
Break the skin
Drift into it's citrus scent
Close my eyes
And see your smile

My lips curl in return
I open my eyes
Lean back in my chair
Peeling the fruit slowly
Remembering
The brush of my hand against yours
The shiver it granted you
As you looked up
Approvingly

Eyes shut
Our fingers slid between each other's
Easily finding their place
Intertwined
Hands held loosely; together
As we walked
A feeling washed over us both
So subtle but so felt
I couldn't even hear
What you said

Reality creeps back in
My eyes open reluctantly
And I stare at the shapes on my monitor
Blankly
I look down at my empty hand
Wondering
What you are doing
And thinking
And wearing

A slice of cool fruit
Against my lips
Biting into it
The tang is awash in my mouth
I sigh in delight
As it brings me back to you
And that first brush
Against your lips
So soft
So warm

The tingle that rushed over me
Tasting your kiss
That first time
Arresting my senses
Penetratingly sharp
Like the flooding
Bite of citrus
That makes me stop now
And savor
You

~TigressSky and Jeremy Tucker~

beautiful

My eyes open
slowly
whiskey's footprints
on my brain
foggy
dully aching
exhausted
tell tale signs
of a night
well spent
The shapes around me
transitioning
through blurry
into focus
I see you
lying next to me
a perfectly shaped
greek sculpture
I feel you
lying warmly
in my arms
The room
though dimly lit
by the rainy morning
made brighter
by your presence
The sheet
barely drapes across
your flawless naked form
In that moment
I am overwhelmed
and feel as though
nothing has ever been
more beautiful
Then a subtle sadness
seeps in
as I realize
that despite your beauty
affecting every interaction
of your life
for good
and bad
you have no idea
how beautiful
you really are
and could be

She & I

she and I
I and she
am I her
or am I me
is she she
or is she me
or
perhaps
her and I
as one
neither
her nor me
equal parts
I and she
together
we are
we