Lovemaking Tips
In youth
beware of the words you may say
the salad dressing you may propose
to bridge the silence in the park the hasty touch
in the inopportune moments of an afternoon
they create untidy expectations of a swoon of hours
like a dry fuck on a bus goes nowhere
take it from me these are just soliloquies jism in your hands
endure the obvious your poverty
that you will kiss until the lips swell and part
that you will never be in the upper echelon of the economy
that nowhere is there a Baby Grand or Chantilly lace but
old sweats on your clothes a hunger on your breath
were you not briefed in the beforehands?
that everything would just be a clumsy kiss and a fondling on the grass?
take it from me there will be a recoiling an undoing
it will all be too gross to bear be gentle with your lover’s hair
while there’s still time to rejoice
remember, make love not war is just a silly phrase
accept defeat as part of the bargain
love like a mad dog unleashed whatever that means
or just say it in their ear
fuck me to kingdom come or something that you will look back in tears
in later years, say that, do not mislead
so rejoice on broken piers observe as your love runs through the surf
in public beaches flaunt your utter recklessness during working hours
kiss while you’re laughing it’s hard to do but precious in the scheme of things
before you get down to the serious business of lovemaking its clumsy moves
and know that you will not sit down for lunch any time soon
because all the love to be made was already made fully clothed in front of strangers
that nakedness is like having already seen the movie
the perfect movie
before the adjustments had to be made positions assumed
speeds synchronized things said and all irrevocably fucked forever
In the middle years
by now you know you can and can’t let go
of all that you’ve invested
dream on in silent bars
an expert on maneuverings
and get it when you can and code it in your planner
because it has never been so good and leave good tips
under the coaster
and your hair is in place and you’ve been all over the place
and you fuck them and leave them as they fuck you and leave you
in a blur of names and places
and if there’s a meaning in all this it escapes you like if you give a fuck
as you look around the apartment to get your bearings
and there’s a thump in your heart as you pull away the sheets
hoping to find your cigarettes and lighter
I only have one thing to say stay true to your story
and be gentler still in your goodbyes
you are forever the fabricator of your lies
you see through a wayward eye
and take solitary cigarettes on solitary walks
in pitch dark so the stains won’t show
in the undertow you keep crisp strokes
in a plastic bag you keep your smokes
and tend to your tan like a labored man is wont to do
forbare the sidelong glances and the empty dance halls
love like someone on a long trip whose first step is that bed
smile when they show pictures of their children
take them to restaurants they’ve never been
and breathe in the smell of their bewilderment at such gallant gestures
play with the memories they will take
when they close the door behind you
ignore the smudged crystal
love them like a rolling fog that creeps out of the harbor
love them like a change of heart too late for rescue
For as you grow old
everything you’ve ever left unsaid will burn your heart
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© 2015 j. a. morales-santo domingo