It’s a wonderful life

Yes it is a process
              in which nothing is ever perfect
although the goal is perfection
              in which knowledge
is never complete
              although that is the ambition
in which love is all that counts
              although all too often
that is forgotten

We are vessels of desire in thrall
               to the sensible spirit of pleasure
: a pretty face and a sweet smile
              the golden gleam of hazel eyes
the subterranean pull of passion

This way love’s intelligence lies
              this way we move hopewards
into the arms of the earth attuned
               to the delicate topographies
of our inner sensibilities
              At night we bed down
in linens soft and cool
              to the touch
and revel in the nakedness
              of our tenderest dreams

Expect the unexpected
              always
the turn of a corner
              a quick-step
a turn of phrase
              a footfall and syllables
that can change a life

Banish faint consolations
              and never settle for second-best
the flowers of friendship never fade
              much less love—
it is a wonderful life
              live it to the full

John Lyons