A Cup of See

   Limoges tea cup: Anne Bewley Artwork: Lancelot Gambis

A Cup of See

(for the phone-shy)

I’m honored you called-- trust in this,

whilst in my heart, I’m brewing tea,

and 

setting a table for two

on the terrace, in a sunstream,

under the wide green oaken canopy.

This way I can see your face composing,

seeking words that may fail, it matters not,

as light waves over it in shadow-play,

flickering off your glasses’ frame, your hair and cheek-bone.

Let our eyes meet and betray us to one another.

Chamomile, verveine, rose, tilleul--

infusing, resting, floating, dissolving time.

For if by that hand-held vessel you arrive,

 I will ride, as in a long-ago dream,

alongside a headless horseperson,

and I can’t feel my way to your sense,

without seeing your eyes alight,

without basking in the shine of your bright.

 This poem is an exploration of the intimacy that comes through in-person vs. over-the-telephone conversation. I had started to notice a greater impetus to use video when calling friends and family, and wondering what it is about the phone...And yet: some of my most intimate conversations have been over the telephone. The voice alone can convey so much, and without the seeing part involved, we may listen more deeply to the warmth and musicality of the human voice.To be explored later...once I phone the ones to whom I owe calls, those who prefer the phone overall. 

I realized while composing this that there is a whole philosophy of seeing that I want to consider, since seeing goes so far beyond the visual, since we do not all see through the eyes*All of my writings are subject to tweaking so check back from time to time to time (the beat of the heart). Drop a comment as you pass through!

Maggie