APPARITIONS

(I wonder
     do you
     could you
     would you
     won't you
          remember the little girl
          who adores you like
          nobody else in the world?

I guess so
     thought so
     wish so
     pray so
     hope so
          but then,
          she wouldn't know
          because all you did
          was look at her,
          gave her a nod,
          then, you casually
          went on your way.

Do you still have
     her book
     her compositions
     her letter
     her message of love in code?

Well, yes
Um, maybe...
Hell, no!
But who cares to know?
     Not you,
     not me,
     not even the whole wide world, you see.

For to this little girl
     all of these
     are just passing thoughts,
          time standing still,
          a moment in time,
          held beaths,
          skipped heartbeats,
          a sneeze that didn't came.)

Yes, you do get stunned
     when a ghost from the past
     hauntingly glides by.

(January 4, 1999)