Today I Loved You More

Today I loved you more,

Rushing out the apartment,

The three of us being blown

with Miami November wind

Down 95.

 

Today I loved you more

Scuttling into a crowded auditorium

to hear Junot on complexity,

vulnerability,

hyper-masculinity.

Today I loved you more

When Nikki Giovanni in her curly blonde, halo

breathed out the niceness of

being in love

and you gently covered my hand with yours.

 

Today I loved you more

As I turned my head

and you ran over  

to the book-filled table

and grabbed Chasing Utopia and had it

signed to us.

We are.

 

Today I loved you more

When you slid into Spanish with ease

like you stepped out of your work shoes

on to a cushy home carpet.

Mi Hondureno.

 

Today I loved you more

When you kicked the ball past me to score a goal-

walked me to the bay-

and stood silently and watched as I led the girls-

at the neighborhood park.

I’m safe.

 

Today I loved you more

As we sat-

my body on your chest

your hands curled up in mine

and we watched a film for class

and you translated what I could not understand

El Dorado-I am there.

 

Today I loved you more

When you picked up the thick, red,

week-old roses you bought from Whole Foods

and spread the petals from the living room

to the bed.

I’m following your lead.

 

Today I loved you more

When you picked up my daughter

sleeping in an almost gymnastic pose

on the living room couch

and tucked her in tight in the safety of the

4-cottage pink walls you painted.

Today I loved you more,

Today I loved you more,

And it is something

never

to be undone.

 

Copyright @Nichelle Calhoun 2013