Cigarette Afterglow

Rose flesh
softens the glare
of white sheets.

In the cigarette
afterglow
we are silent.

No words
can transcend
the poetry

our bodies spoke
in the velvet trance
of ecstasy’s oblivion.

I will drink the wine
of our silence
until I am inebriated

with the delusion
a ticking clock isn’t racing
toward goodbye.


©Susie Clevenger 2014

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Comments

hyperCRYPTICal said…
Oh I remember these blissful days of yesteryear Susie - my clock is now very much ticking...
Anna :o]
January 6, 2014 at 4:05 AM
Anonymous said…
The afterglow of love is its own candle, holding out long after the fact. Such painfully careful details here, glowing on, perhaps forever. Loved it ...
January 6, 2014 at 5:26 AM
LaTonya Baldwin said…
The closing is strong not fleeting at all.
January 6, 2014 at 5:29 AM
my heart's love songs said…
oooh! love the ending of this, Susie! i miss cigarettes....

Happy New Year!
dani
♥
January 6, 2014 at 6:58 AM
Grace said…
I love the subtle emotional whiplash, specially the ending ~ Lovely one Susie ~
January 6, 2014 at 7:56 AM
Kathryn Dyche said…
A beautiful write, love the denial of the ticking clock at the end.
January 6, 2014 at 8:21 AM
Kenia Santos said…
I like it that your writing is so clean that we can be in the moment and nothing can move our attention away from it.

<3
January 6, 2014 at 8:23 AM
Marlon O. said…
The day is calling out,
and it says:
Stay.

Beautiful poem.
January 6, 2014 at 8:24 AM
Kerry O'Connor said…
This encapsulates a perfect moment, but the poet in you does not neglect the goodbye, waiting and unavoidable.
January 6, 2014 at 8:33 AM
Marian said…
wow, almost makes me wanna take up smoking. am i missing something? maybe!
excellent, delicious, Susie.
January 6, 2014 at 9:28 AM
Sumana Roy said…
love wants to triumph over time...
January 6, 2014 at 10:01 AM
revelations said…
very tender and sensual but with a little hook at the end... enjoyed it... :)
January 6, 2014 at 10:47 AM
hedgewitch said…
Everything about this is classic, Susie, and your choice of language to illustrate the age-old conundrum is just flawless.
January 6, 2014 at 11:13 AM
Robert Gibson: PWES Editor said…
"I will drink the wine
of our silence
until I am inebriated"

This is a beautiful set of poetry. WOW...
January 6, 2014 at 12:19 PM
Sherry Blue Sky said…
A beautiful flight, till the kicker of that clock ticking towards goodbye. A fantastic write!!
January 6, 2014 at 1:39 PM
Laura said…
Beautiful… love this line especially "I will drink the wine
of our silence
until I am inebriated"
January 6, 2014 at 1:40 PM
Peggy said…
Nice one. Beauty and wonder and then the kick of reality,
January 6, 2014 at 5:30 PM
Hannah said…
Ooo...you gather in that cocooned moment of timelessness so well, Susie...great share!
January 6, 2014 at 7:03 PM
kaykuala said…
a ticking clock isn’t
racing toward goodbye

There are lots to be accomplished and time is a factor. Hopefully one can succeed and survive doing them! Nicely Susie!

Hank


January 6, 2014 at 9:06 PM
Margaret said…
The beginning is just so delicious and sweet throughout and the ending is quite vulnerable - it speaks to me of the fear of thinking a lover will leave - it doesn't say he will! (makes me think of Bridgette Jones Diaries - where she keeps thinking her lover will leave her (have you seen those movies?)
January 6, 2014 at 10:18 PM
Aditi said…
Beautiful poem... The last stanza kicked us into a reality...which we often want to forget...
January 6, 2014 at 10:59 PM
Liz Rice-Sosne said…
There are many beautiful things in this poem. Many! I love that I can see them. Then there is the ending ... so true to love itself. This is a very good poem.
January 7, 2014 at 10:31 AM
Kay L. Davies said…
Beautifully done, Susie.
Luv, K
January 9, 2014 at 12:24 AM
scotthastiepoet said…
Hi Susie,

My first time here and this is the one that caught my eye the most - Here you have deftly captured a sweet moment that really resonates in the memory - Loved it! Regards Scott www.scotthastie.com
January 18, 2014 at 10:35 AM
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