Poems by Shannen Tan
Photos by Shyen Lee
Miles Away
My body remembers you as you were.
The tickling warmth of your breath
dancing over valleys of collarbones.
Rough hands pursue endlessly
losing their way over and over again
Left to right, up and down, sea from sky
But when I opened my eyes, we is just I and me alone
and you, long ago, disappeared amidst careless sheets
smoke from a flickering candle.
I watched the flame die out. I’m exhausted too.
After all the longest distance is when
I stand in front of you and you don’t see me.
Former Lover
How do you be friends with your former lover
Because in between the words there is a lot unspoken
about him begging for a persistence in grace
and you
unresolved in an infinite ache.
There is nothing left to be said
in the revelation of day
because we know what is true
is hidden, but unforgotten
under the covers of the night
His fingers have left dents on your skin
the salt of his breath still lingers
you cannot be friends with your former lover
you are irrevocably his now.
Take My Body
Come and rest in gentle arms
weariness tear from aching bones
shed the stubborn mask of false charm
and seek solace where we're not alone
there is comfort in knowing two are the same
so be free from thoughts of reservation
in this moment we are but delicately tame
we are without doubts or hesitation
Come and leave this place behind
and find shelter in our makeshift cavern
though savage, our touches kind
you are made vulnerable at every turn
We are wild animals seeking for somebody
so here, take my body. Take my body.
