Ode to NOLA, Part II

you lured me back to you

I was drawn by the pulse of your marching

to the sound of your own drum

and I wanted to be with you

just to see for myself

so I crept on down to see you

suspended in mid-air

my heart in my throat and a knot in my chest

and on my way out I felt stronger somehow

that the cut was still deeper

and the blood ever thicker

and now the very thought of you

washing up along the southern shore

bathed in oil, body baking in the sun

the image burns my brain

and I'm haunted by your absence

and the presence of these thoughts

your ghost still eludes me

which is how I know you best

the silence that surrounds me is unfriendly and familiar

I miss you sometimes

and I wish you were here