I don't write a lot of love poems, mostly because the love my spouse and I choose is steady, constant, reliable... which is to say that it is comfortable for us, undramatic. Our love is real, deep, complex, and we don't take it for granted, but I do not often find my mind lingering on it, processing it, because I am not concerned about how we love each other.

But sometimes I stop to consider who I would be without her in my life, and the truth is that I cannot imagine it. We were married very young, and we have been fortunate enough to grow together as we've matured, so every corner of my life bears the fingerprints of her.

This poem is about my love, the heart of me, Shannon.

You are the art
The heart of me
The part of me I love
Most readily
The start
Of my serenity
Gratefully
I sing.

Will you sit
With me awhile
And count
Pearls on
The beach
The grains
Of life
Beneath
Our feet?

Will you hold
My hand tight
and whisper still
To my heart
The dawn
Of this man
All of life
Is art.