Ode to Sisterly Love

Tick, tick

Seconds, minutes, hours

Holding my spirit, suspended

Waiting for that midnight call

Voices summon us outside

Down in the thicket

Tangled up in the summer leaves

Healthy, damp and green

A ladder stands ready

Andrew, Jeff, John, Justine, Deane

How many boys? Sweet summer boys

Their soft hands gliding across the folded bed cover

Shaking my shoulder, your shoulder, awake

Awake! they call

Come outside into the midnight dew

Middlebury lies aslumber

But there are many adventures yet to uncover

Soft, kissing adventures

Stolen embraces beneath the lattice

Beneath the hedges

Beside the rushing streams

I can imagine nothing sweeter

Than his warm breath against my cheek

Behind my ear

Along the curve of my nape

And Kirsten, just round the corner

Sheltered in a neighboring lilac

I hear you ask me for a little more

Hear Kirsten kissing with a little more

And I know that I am safe

That in a few moments I’ll grab her warm palm

And we’ll run, laughing, through the humid nighttime streets

Our window will loom larger

My heart will beat harder

Kirsten all the while the gentle harbor at my side