A Poem for Rae
by Verlaine ©2005

What if
The eyes I looked into every morning
Were hazel
Instead of sapphire blue?
(Blue as the border where sky and ocean meet
Blue as the edge of the welding torch flame)
What if I looked into eyes that hadn't seen
All the good and bad times we've had
And loved me anyway?
Eyes that never turned away
Even when things got rough?
Even when I got rough?

What if
The hair I ran my fingers through
Were brown
Instead of living liquid light?
(Gold as sunshine on the beach at dawn
Gold as all the future he gave up)
What if I touched someone who didn't know me
Who hadn't been there all the time
Who didn't understand the nightmares?
Two lives wrapped up together -
Gingham dog and calico cat -
All tied together with gold and iron knots.

What if
The hands that claimed me
Held a pen
Instead of one big Magnum?
(Hands strong enough to fight the grave for me
Hands gentle enough to soothe a frightened child)
What if I didn't feel calluses and scars,
All the little nicks and marks that life leaves
Just like the ones I've got?
Hands that never let me down,
Never let me fall.
Maybe sometimes they should have.

I wouldn't trade–I swear, not ever.
There's lot's of girls, but a man only gets one partner,
Only gets one chance at me and thee.
But still
Sometimes I wonder:

What if
I had met you first?