By: Leila A. Fortier

You are the pause settling into the marrow
Of my heart’s beat~ The fabric of a universe upon the
Whisper of my own breath~ There is no distance between us
In the lapse of time and space~ We are consumed one within the
Other into layered realms of being~ The rippled effect of each echo
& trace~ Where fingers have wandered into places I knew not could
Be touched~ Massaged into a tender breaking of waking~ I close my
Venetian eyes~ Holding in the sacred with my unseen understanding
I will never survive the night without this drink…Without your
Pouring~ I have become both milk and rain if only to
Slake myself without you~ Distilled into this
Honeyed ambrosia~ Glistening from
The bowl of your own hunger~
Partake of me and relieve
This fever~ This ache
Of every moment
Left starved
Of your
Touch
The

~Quickening Pulse~

Of
Little
Deaths
Double-helix
Spirals ambient
Rush shivering silver
Only to shatter into some
Cosmic pause before being born
Once again into deeper penetrations~
Breathing blood and vitality~ Ingested into
Obsidian~ Swallowed in merlot~ The enveloping
Susurrus of echo and trace falling deep into waking
Every moment- The fruit of splendor shedding its own
Skin that it may be revealed to the light~ God alone
Knows I want to be naked again…If only for you

****

Leila A. Fortier is a poet, artist, and photographer currently residing in Okinawa, Japan. She is a member of the Alpha Sigma Lambda National Honor Society; pursuing her BFA in creative writing through Southern New Hampshire University. Her sculpted poetry is often accompanied by her own multi-medium forms of art, photography, and spoken performance. The symbolic representation of inner dialog and fluid continuum of her thought processes is demonstrated by her signature use of italics and the tilde. Selections of her work have been translated into French, Italian, Spanish, Arabic, and German in a growing effort to foster cultural diversity and understanding through the voice of poetry. With over one hundred publishing credits, her work in all its mediums has been featured in a vast array of publications both in print and online. Her forthcoming second book of poetry, Numinous is scheduled to be published by Saint Julian Press in the autumn of 2014. A complete listing of her published works can be found at: www.leilafortier.com