The Moment You Know – A Poem

When I first saw you,

your face was framed in light.

I couldn’t tell if it shone around you

or from within you. All I know

is that I was mesmerized.

Your eyes changed colour

in that light, shifting from

a soft blue to a light green.

We sat down, coffees in hand

and I was immediately entranced

by your voice. It had a deep timbre

and a soft cadence to it so that

it almost sounded like music.

The more we talked, the more I wanted

to know everything about you.

It felt as if I had known you before

though we had just met.

I was so comfortable with you,

I felt safe with you, as if I could

be completely open. I knew instinctively

that you would not judge me, that I was

free to be me with you.

Around us, I heard others talking

but it sounded like music,

soft and lilting. It took me a moment

to realize that the music

came from within me.

As we continued talking,

our coffee cups empty long ago,

I asked you if you wanted to go to dinner.

It surprised me that those words

came from my mouth.

On the way to your car, you took my hand.

You did it softly, hesitantly,

as if you were unsure.

I clasped your hand, just as softly,

as if unwilling to hold on too tightly

less you fluttered away.

Yet your hand felt right in mine,

It felt wonderful. The song from within

increased slightly, filling my body.

When you looked at me,

I could see that light from within you

glowing all the brighter.

Through out dinner, you told me

about your family, about your work.

But most importantly, about yourself.

Then you asked about me,

about what I was passionate about,

what drove me, what made my heart sing.

No other man had ever asked me this

and I was dumbfounded.

I told you that I was a writer

and as I spoke, I watched leaves and vines

begin to grow along the walls

of the restaurant, covering them

until it looked as if we were sitting

inside a garden. I wondered vaguely

what was making the plants grow

until I realized that it was my hope,

my wish that you could be someone

that I would be able to grow with,

that we could grow together.

When you took me back home,

you held my back on the stairs

and you held the door open for me.

I marvelled that I was moved

by such a small act of kindness.

That song within me began to sing

louder still as you moved your face

towards mine. When our lips touched,

it was as if an entire symphony

played within me, singing for us

as we began that dance,

that slow waltz,

of two people who had waited

so long to find each other.

Looking back on that night,

I knew then that I loved you,

and have loved you more

every day since.