Laps

For a little while he ran beside me
Patiently matching my smaller steps
While we talked, and laughed.

But after awhile, he became restless,
Life demanding, as it should,
That he give it all he had inside him.

And so, he tossed his head
And began to pull away.
Faster and faster he ran,
While I struggled in vain to match him

Until at last, exhausted, I fell
In the wide expanse of grass

And there I lay, alone.
As women often do
I watched him as he ran
Far from my reach.

But I was not angry
And I did not envy him,
But only lay there in the sun and watched, spellbound
The strength of a man,
Running, with all the love he had.

And after a little while
He circled back around
And returned to where I had fallen.

Without stopping he gathered me up
Into his arms
And kept on running,
His heart pounding in my ears,
His arms holding me aloft
With all the life inside him

Until at last, exhausted, he fell
In the wide expanse of grass

And cried, Why do I run?
Where does it take me?

Don't worry, I said
Cradling his head between my breasts,
My heart pounding in his ears
My womb surrounding him
With all the life inside me

Until he cried out, spellbound,
At the strength of a woman
Knowing, with all the love she had.
We slept then

And in the morning we leapt to our feet
And laughed into the wind
And ran.