A fleeting infatuation with a perfect, poetic moment, and a beautiful young man. Enjoy.

The enormous dinosaur statue
looms out over the sidewalk
by the Smithsonian’s
Museum of Natural History.
As I sit people watching,
dappled sun imbues
the grand walkway of the Mall
with the effervescent glitter
of an old movie’s flashing motion.
I notice another natural wonder…
a blond, succulent boy-adolescent,
lounged on a bench, legs out-stretched,
crossed at the ankles, carefree, vivid.
Tousled hair tickles his smooth face
as he reads, alone, intent.
Baby blue faded
denim jeans suck close
to the mystery
topography of his
pelvis. What dreams
conjure his desires?
My wandering mind
imagines the
out-cropping of the
dinosaur’s graceful neck
groping in the trees above
for food to satisfy the longing
in it’s great, curved throat.
I smile at this wistful image,
wishing
I could laugh my way
into those trees
and become a leaf
to be grazed by him,
nuzzled by his warm neck.
Arms folded
across his chest-
a solid, lean torso
arises from his trunk
up away into the light of day and
the dappled mirage of
my fluttering thoughts
back into history and this museum.

I shudder with pleasure
and lose all my leaves.