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A Picture of You

by Rafer Nelsen

Yesterday, I saw a picture of you,

Green eyes and gold-laced shoes.

But the world's most beautiful blocked my view.

Their hair, their nose and, worse,

Their unnaturally lanky cheek bones,

Taller than sky-scrapers,

Obscured the vision of my one thing true.

 

Till they spoke, revealing deformity

With lifeless, knee-deep words,

And faded away with humorless verbs

So that I saw again,

Still solidly in place, as if braced,

That clear picture of you.

But behold, there I was off to one side,

Kissing your cheek a tender shade of blue.