Show Me Love

When we were ten we made plans to hold hands at Hebrew school.
When you found within you the nerve to touch, though I hoped for such, I withdrew.

But it wasn’t because I wasn’t into you.

When I read the poem that you hid above the shelf, I smiled to myself and hoped for more.
Then it became clear that the poem was the first of a hefty book of verse about my hair.

But it wasn’t because I wasn’t into you.

You’re the first boy, who ever really showed me love. But what you really showed me was too much.

Are you crazy? You think you’ll never love again? Just get a hold of how you felt back then.

Gracey, tell me is it really you? And tell me is it really true you liked that poem?

Gracey, if I really loved you so, there’s something that I need to know right now.

Did you ever for a moment love me back?

Remember, if you loved me, that it’s perfect on its own. And never let it go because you’re scared.

And, yes, I loved you; I just wasn’t ready yet.