For being this snail, this day,
at this joint singularity
of time and space -
I take you into the deepest
regions of my head
and find contentment.
Accidents of birth and chromosome
have brought us here;
relationships that bloomed -
ties that withered -
trudged this one path only
that led to replete September.
Under this triumph of starved light,
this treasure-house of gloom
where shadows freckle down-
I watch your quiet movement in the leaves-
I listen to our union of silences.