Is this love?

 How much of this is love?

When despite the world being so rough

and some winters so bleak

if ever he was sick

and needed new air

I wish I could take care

of the man I can't get enough of.

How much of this is love?

When he spoke and I cried

as though I had a real claim

against what could be on the side

to console

and maybe give it in the whole

if there was no warmth in the flame.

How much of this is love?

When there were so many tears

the first night he had to be away,

further away, not out of will

and despite knowing the return

all I was left to feel

was a fire that couldn't not burn,

there, in the dark, in full display,

made of a longing, and of fears

I know I haven't felt in years.

How much of this is love?

When what hurts more in the end

is not the lack of some passion

but the emptiness and abandonment

where there isn't even a fraction

of that love, life and friend.

10/09/2023