The Back of My Hand
By Shannon P. Laws
It was that time of
the day when the light
gave away the distance
of each hill
The twilight swarm of gnats
and wishing cottonwood seeds
bounce off the windshield
in a rush to live and die
The dark sun wanting to set
took a rest over the last ridge
It was that place on
the highway where lines
solid white
double yellow
solid white
bend in unison to
show off its curves
like a lady in a corset
It was that time, that place
when you wiggled in your seat
turned a shoulder forward
looked at me and said
I love you. You know I love you, right?
Your hand hugged mine
as we came to that point
in the pass where the
road is visible for miles
I saw it worming down around
ending with a sharp left
I knew it continued into
the Skagit Valley, pass a cafe
I knew we’d find the freeway
and reach our street by ten tonight
We’d both go to work in the morning
and the week would continue
into more weeks, months and years…
and when you said
you loved me
it was a lie
shannon p. laws 