Love Poem: A Handwritten Letter
Juliet Ligon Avatar
Written by: Juliet Ligon

A Handwritten Letter

It had been ninety three hankering hours 
since we had last spoken. 
A little rift had set our bond adrift. 
This pacing evening, I heard 
a sudden drop in my front door mailbox. 
Thinking it was the wind, I didn't respond quickly. 
The sound of a shutting car door followed. 
It took minutes for curiosity's reach to 
cautiously retrieve an unstamped envelope 
with only my name inscribed on the front. 
With a careful tear of the lick trail and
the crispness of this rare letter unfolding, 
my senses delighted in your unique imprint. 
I could smell your sloughed skin, 
with a whiff of your Old Spice cologne. 
I could almost feel 
your fingerprint ridges upon the edges. 
Your energy weaved 
throughout factory bleached fibers, 
each intensely pressed midnight line 
looping and riding 
on a mystery journey waywardly 
into my long awaited heart. 
Each jagged lift and dip 
likened to a pair of doves amidst their mating ritual, 
playing a game of tag and chase. 
I heard your tenor tone with each soothing syllable. 
Your yearning sang a sonnet
of the reasons your heart stirred for me. 
Flatteries lifted me on floating wings
and kept me soaring as you recalled 
all our pleasant experiences and 
apologized for our few misleadings. 
You pleaded that we would 
withstand misunderstandings 
and embrace each other's differences, 
connecting our opposing puzzle pieces 
to frame a work of art. 
I pictured the moment you 
passionately placed your pen upon the page. 
Perhaps you hovered over every word, 
crumbling up rough drafts. 
Perhaps your awakened emotions free-handedly led 
your whimsical words to perfection.
Your intentions were clear and confident, 
certain of what you wanted, 
and I was sure, 
even before your passionate persuasion, 
that I wanted the same.

12-24-19