The Picture on the Wall

Its amazing how we can overlook something every day and one day, as we lie in bed, we 'see' it.

The picture on the wall....

A vacation we took when we were still very young
and very much in love,
when it meant so much to travel together
that we almost always shared a berth,
even on empty trains

We are sitting on a beach in your home town,
I'm smiling coyly as I lean towards you
You're looking straight at the camera,
your impish, bare-all-teeth smile that I first fell for,
apart of course from your deadly good bod :-)

A time when I was the young bride
eager to please
wearing an Indian outfit, a 'bottu' on my forehead,
though I drew the line at the flowers in my hair
and the rice on the plate, with curd and a banana

Our first years together, long rides in the rain
games of scrabble and a wok full of fettuccini
Or the poetry of John Donne
that I insisted on reading to you
stopping only to share a kiss

Im not a pleaser any more
and you're more mature and certain...
In 19 years, much has changed
Yet, much remains unchanged
like the picture on the wall