The Kiss

one day
while walking through the park
I came across two lesbians
sucking face on a bench
I was immediately impressed
by their unflinching determination
and found myself first thinking
“Well, I guess they don’t have a place to go”
and then realized that I had stopped
because I was hypnotized by their unrelenting passion
and couldn’t take my eyes off of them
It was an awesome demonstration of lust
and their desire seemed unfathomable

As they plunged further
into each others mouths
I felt my own tongue’s desire
to reach as deep as their mutual need
to express the feelings
that they had for each other
Their desperation was humbling
no fear
total abandon
and as pure a demonstration
of love
that I knew was physically possible
no matter how fleeting it may ultimately prove

Suddenly
I became aware of my voyeurism
not that I was making a moral judgment
or experiencing some sexual titillation,
but felt the arid reality
within my own life
and how sexual passion
was a distant memory
How did it come to this?
Why was I now on the outside looking in
How I still longed to kiss
and be kissed like that
floating in the endless intimacy of such wetness
gloriously pushing on and on
into the infinite reaches
of what of we hold most precious
oneness.
I viewed this kiss
the way you might a distant oasis
with its succulent rewards
but more a mirage
to this traveler
who is so terribly parched
in a vast desert
of dry pecks and air kisses.
7/14/05