Bridging the Gap (II)

An original poem for those in a long-distance relationship – by Stephen Nashef

They lived at the antipodes

and could not cross from their extremes

the distance filled with countries, seas

so agreed to meet up in their dreams.

See, they enjoyed a love, of sorts,

so agreed to set a weekly time,

and – to cultivate their thoughts –

a block of cheese, a glass of wine.

When she first told him, he laughed a lot

at her idea, though quite admired it

and agreed to take the daytime slot

(the time difference, you see, required it).

The trick was don’t discuss it after,

so he’d drift off at 2pm

and enjoy the music of her laughter

as they danced the clockwork of Big Ben

or waltzed beneath the flowing ocean.

The growth of love he felt was vast.

He felt a true, profound devotion

subsume him more each week that passed.

It was after a stroll down a country track

(by which they made love quite mischievously)

that he heard news of the leech attack

and that she had died 6 weeks previously.

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Read part one of Bridging the Gap here