Initials of love carved,

and worn
into this redwood bench,
my fingertip traces
the contours of I love you’s and C + S,
A&A4ever carved into the wood
where I sit,
running my hand
over the intertwining letters,
enveloping each other like the sea salty fog circling around me,
so I am barely able to see the waves below,
from my perch on the redwood bench.

I am surrounded by
exclamations, and commitments
to love carved
in sun soaked impulsiveness,
now, weathered into damp letters on redwood.

I wonder about the thousands of love wishes,
couples still waking every morning with their arms wrapped around one another, and
those who find themselves alone,
the C no longer a part of the S,
even as their letters remain side-by-side,
it is for them
that I carve an H, and then an i  into the redwood
with the golden edge of my post office key,
leaving letters for the lonely,
a Hi, as a greeting of hope,
for those who wander to the seaside,
sit upon this bench,
holding the weight of love,
alone.

~

~

Love elephant and want to go steady?

Sign up for our (curated) daily and weekly newsletters!

Editor: Emily Bartran

Images: Pixoto