I cannot see her but from the smell of her

perfume and silent walk

I know it's her

she doesn't see me as the rain drips down

my umbrella and onto the street

I the unknown not able to see

I sense her weariness and she walks faster

as if to catch a bus

her perfume drifting by

intoxicating me

There goes another day hearing her footsteps

wanting to speak to her

not knowing what to say

and the sound of her voice softly

speaking is music to my ears

tantalizing like hummingbirds in flight

the nights get longer as I weave through

this crowded street and suddenly I'm spun around

and startled into the arms of

a stranger I know but

haven't seen

It is I who knows and yet haven't felt the eyes

of the unknown stranger who has

taken me into the night and shown me the way through

the darkness of daylight

like a suckling vampire I take to her

bosom like a baby and we walk

hand in hand until the bat flies away

to leave me with broken wings and wounded pride

at the end of the lonely street where

there is no one to tell me who

was that stranger that leaves me reeling from the scent of her.

copyright@2007 Madeline C. Baxter