Words Will Never Do Him Justice

by Hannah White

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I’ll give it a shot 

At describing you in the most poetic way 

My fear here is that I won’t do you justice 

That I will get caught in overused metaphors for your eyes 

How the color reminds me of some beautiful natural thing 

Or how your lips take the breath from between mine 

And there’s no sufficient way to describe the slant of your chin 

Or the uneven ridges of the bridge of your nose 

 

Your body is not one most poets write about 

I’ll admit it’s not the chiseled stone of a statue 

Your hands cannot crush mountains 

And your shoulders could not hold the world 

But your embrace is the safest place I know 

Your hands are strong enough to steady 

And soft enough to hold my face in that gentle way 

 

And while you do not hold poetry on your tongue 

Or recite resounding quotes of the greats 

You also do not spin false stories in my ears 

Never dip your tongue in poison before you ravish me  

With well-spoken, half-hearted, arm-twisted 

do-not-look-deeper-than-these-words apologies 

 

You are candid and clear  

And your words hold only the promise 

Of what you are sure you can promise 

 

My dear  

I cannot write about you like the greats 

I will not offend you by masking the true beauty of your physique 

And the metaphors I know would never capture  

The stories I find in the planes of your face 

But I can climb those mountains with you  

And explore the world through your eyes 

 

                                         ~ I can love you in ways words will never do justice