I Will Tell You How I Love You in the New Year

Today I saw a man who walks just like you,
and I turned with a breath,
with a sense of coming.

Cat’s claw blooms on the vine
like hands held open to a promise.
Your name means gift from God.

We were sitting on rocks warmed by the sun
when you turned to look at me.

Your eyelids will close on me soon.
Let me keep them there,
those moments dripping with amber,

while thoughts of you still comb
through my hair like fingers.
I will be grateful forever.

My palms spread out like drum skins.

Joshua Garcia lives and writes in Charleston, South Carolina, where he is pursuing an MFA at the College of Charleston and is an editorial assistant for Crazyhorse. Joshua’s poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in Nashville Review, Ekstasis Magazine, and Ruminate Magazine.