"I Was Imprisoned by His Heart - A Sestina"

“I WAS IMPRISONED by his heart"
2008

In love, we know all of the words
Inflections pieced together, a poet’s well
Group – until I glimpse through ajar eye
In love, the overdue touch of hand
Tows tide to shore and wets the sand
Mortals speak in bottled wine and verse.

In love, wine press of time bottles the verse
Anthology of shell on shelf, what words!
Dealing instead the forms of shifting sand
In love, to drink from prospective well –
L’oiseau cautiously takes seed from hand
Realizing its caged perspective – lies the eye!

In love, this side of me rests in the nest or eye
Sprig shows construction – world’s strong verse!
First Light changes through canopy down to hand
In love, we know captivity is over through words
Net and furrow spread form a weathered well
First flight if you soar or land, return to sand

Capsized vessel displaces protected cargo to sand
But for one heart, or the pleasant me inside eye
Shipment of scripts to slow traffic – it is still well
Love is not the repeated verse
Quiet coppice – habits of freedom chart watery words
Captain or bird, the sea cannot undo link with love’s hand

In love, a store of grain leaves a store in hand
Anchor to withstand water over years, to sand
Could leave the lover without five pence for words
Orienting the heart depicts chamber as sufficient eye
Qualify feeling with stone and you return stolen verse
Beat beat – inside weather builds into bucket for well

In love, hold oar to language – one is hidden well
My hair my eyes my emphatic want for quiet hand
None of these verbs can arrest the bird during verse
In love, some prose is shared but none is without sand
New love makes us feel safe to look one in the eye
With one hand they ensnare the heart – with words:

two verses - - - - - catch rainwater in the well
love the essential beam under words - - give me your hand
remember the one who removed sand - - from your eye