A Different Prayer For Me

I'm in the cafe.
The floor is moving;
the vessel rocking.
We're in troubled waters.
There's a captain somewhere.
Upstairs some drunkards;
Below the deck it's empty

I take a sip of chai
and say a prayer
for you across the ocean
where you - God willing -
push off in still waters,
dimly lit by the lantern
of the sky.

I dream
of pouring you a glass of wine.
Definitely red.
Kissing your lips,
feeling your soft fiery hair
in the kiss.

I dream it's with you
that I can taste the fine cheeses
and see the earth colors
of all the great pyramids
of the globe.

But I don't want to invite you
aboard this rocky vessel.

Not until I say a different prayer
for me:

My God,
if she would give me
her red wine lips
and fiery hair
to taste,
it is my distant hope
and most immediate prayer
that I could be
the still waters
for her sailing.

Amen