L and the Seasons
Samantha Finley



L had me caught in a split
second that felt like an eternity
when I could just feel her
breath escaping her parted lips
and grazing my own. I’d never kissed
anyone the way I kissed her. It wasn’t
supposed to be anything,
but I thought of us
(a wild thing that would happen
one scandalous summer, yet it was
very much fall and I wanted to be wild
with her during all seasons)

because she told me her favorite
composer is Ravel, but I should still listen
to the Elgar cello concerto (only
the Jacqueline du Pré version – not
Yo-Yo Ma); she’s smart in that way.
Beside her bed is a road
map of the symphony she’s writing

(I stared at it as she slept next to me).

The rise and fall of her black cursive
notes were beautiful enough for me,
but I still long to hear the endless music
dancing throughout her zoetic mind –

I long to move her in winter and spring.

About the author:
Samantha currently resides in Columbus, Ohio and is a third-year English major at The Ohio State University. Her hobbies include reading and writing poetry and spending time with her two cats, Penny and Ollie.