Ephemera

I thought of Bear today:
my friend Mike Bear
whom I loved like a brother.
I saw him on the hillside,
drunk as usual,
looking down on the vale
where our lives
stood laughing.
Today I see that valley
is a long long way away.

I thought of you today:
a sister, a lover,
and a friend,
far away in your too-tight rooms
bouncing lovers, children, pets.
Washing saucepans.
Sipping coffee.
I thought of your sadness.
I thought of your beauty,
and how you came to terms
with dreams gone
gone out of mountains gone
away

I thought of long lost friends today.