The Spell Will Not Be Broken

Do you remember that boat?
The colour of the waves
The sea, the froth, the birds, the sand
All things that existed for just one day
All things that go on in my mind
We rowed out, but never too far
We shared the same unspoken fear
The day was a day of rolled up pants
Shirtless bodies
The sun lit your chest hair on fire
Shadowed your lips when you smiled
Etched your muscles deeper
Helped the day fall under a terrific spell
A spell which I am still under

And the day that I die
When I am carried from my home
The warmth of that sun will slowly disappear
It will fade from my broken body
The spell will be broken 
The spell will be broken

Do you remember the silence on the boat
After the olives and the wine?
Do you remember the kiss, the caress, the sweat, the ghasp?
The only line of poetry you knew you screamed
At me, the gulls, the sky, the sea!
The day was long, beautiful, historic and simple
The day was the history of the world in one
We could have stayed there forever
But the world changes 
And spells don't work like that
Tides move and take boats and their cargos with
We move and take thought and memory too

And the day that I die
When I am carried from my home
The warmth of that sun will slowly disappear
It will fade from my broken body
The spell will be broken
The spell will be broken

Do you remember that boat?
There in the summer of the arab
Politicians set the sky on fire and the people put it out
Do you remember me and the thunder in my chest?
There as we both caught the reflection of our future in the water
There as we kissed in that little wooden boat 
On a sea, calm, but for the odd little frothy wave
Under a sun that kept us warm and glowing
Hearing the music of the birds circling overhead
And as we found our way back to the hard, hard ground
And after a time back to my home
Knowing you were watching me as i walked away 
Leaving your little country
Your arm raised in final salute
I knew that you would not forget

And the day that you die
When you are carried from your trench
The warmth of that sun will never disappear
It can never fade from that broken body
The spell will not be broken
The spell will not be broken







 


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