Timeflies

"Time flies", they say, those people who
Have never been away from you.
And how can they know the ache, the yearning
That comes from watching slowly turning
Second hands? Why should they see
How hard it is to say "Hee-hee
Au-revoir - see you soon - I'll be back"?

Indeed, in my pre-buddy days,
My life passed swiftly, in a haze
Of multi-tasked activities, all
Designed to fill life's fleeting bowl
With meaning and achievement, now,
While searching for the why and how
Of life - what does it mean? - what's the point?

And then on one autumnal eve,
We met and talked and took our leave,
A simple way to plant the seed
That grew and grew without the need
For elongated nurturing, so
Keen it was to blossom forth,
To flower - in love - enfin!

So graduation came and went,
Symbolic for me, since it meant
A final confirmation that
The previous life was over - what
I'd valued up to now had had
It's time (not good or bad);
Over - complete - farewell!

Waiting just to be with you,
Head over heels (you know it's true)
I watch reluctant minute hands,
Slow digital numbers, hour-glass sands,
And hours are days, and days are years,
And weeks are ages, it appears;
Slow - reticent - dawdling time.

But soon, I know, the hour will come
For boarding; I will journey home
To you, to see your smiling face,
Your beauty waiting at the gate,
To kiss you long in Kimpo's glare,
Impervious to others' stares;
Together - forever - in love.

To Hee-bon, December 19th, 2000.
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