Superposition - a poem by Adam Carlton

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Superposition

There is a sense of doubled vision here:

Strolling in the street you are severe

Your sensuality diffused from all but me

Maturity presents as passion-free

 

But come the night I’ll find a different girl

Whose willing limbs accommodate, whose hands grasp tight

You wrap around me as our lips draw near

Silvered bodies in the cool moon light

 

And in the street, in kitchen or in nave

Conflicting visions duel behind my face

That public view contends with private space

Your hitched-up clothes, hot flesh and urgent haste

 

I hold my pose, respectable and light

I hold your hand and wait again for night.

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