Solitude

For long, I have longed
To speak to you the way I speak to myself
For long I could not find you —
Always away or lost in thoughts
Now I long no more
And speak to myself, for myself
For I know, even after speaking to you
I’d still be left alone
With myself

So I speak for myself, to myself
I am a good listener, a great talker —
Sufficient unto myself

I touch myself and feel myself
I hear and grope myself
Not trying to become
Not seeking to find

I am vain, an impostor —
Whole and fully mine
I am myself
As much as the bird is itself

The wall behind me stands
Supports my sitting
The bed beneath me now
The words before me tell
I am myself
I talk to myself
No longer longing
To speak with you