gay boy, you are beautiful.

Gay boy, you are beautiful, right
here in the gold-sheen wash, this
very moment, you break into laughter
and what an honor, seeing you, here,
all those years you lived like a
ship in a bottle, held your breath
then squeezed your way through
that narrow neck, heartbeat in
your throat as you stammered
the truth, just to feel what it is
to breathe the honest air, and
what a gift, what a love letter –

By the pool, your fingertips fidget
at your shirtline, eyes scan the
scene for smoke to signal danger,
just another place you don’t belong,
but, in silence, you breathe like
a chorus rehearsed, and then
you pull free, only this way can
your shoulders know sun, let
freedom rinse, we are here and
in our palms we carry beauty
we won’t quite see until
time slows our bodies, right
this minute, prescient, urgent,
lovely, ours, you are
beautiful, gay boy, you.