Butterflies, Angels, and Cities of Us

Butterflies, Angels, and Cities of Us

You may not hear it, but my heart beats fast yet steady

Matching the pace you walked when you entered my life

The butterflies flapped their wings in my stomach

Some still caught in their cocoons, waiting to transform when you uttered my name

The clatter and chatter in the room hushed

But maybe that was part of my imagination

I quite possibly also imagined the wings that were set on your back

Willing me to come forth, but also shaming me because my mind kept saying

“Maybe I’m not worthy to stand next to such a precious creation.”

I don’t know if your existence was more precious or the electricity that shot through me as I approached to speak

The words choking me; yet, your smile being the Heimlich needed for me to breathe again

Each breath reminding me that I was alive for this very moment

And many more moments like these, except I knew they had to be with you

Because from this day forward, I wouldn't be able to inhale another gust of oxygen

unless I knew your name

Unless I knew the fears that threatened you at night and the demons that attacked your well being

Unless I knew what ways to make you smile, adding to that list continually

Looking back now, it’s such a big promise coming from a first encounter

But a promise that I would honor a thousand times over

I do not know the reason our paths were meant to cross

But I do know that those intersecting lines spoke volumes to the cities we could create together

But this is not something we could just build over night

And though I may not have the strength to pick you up, I can surely sweep you off your feet