candlelight

In the distant dusky dim 

Of one bright strong candle 

Dancing from across the room, 

He looked into her face. 

Her delicate features varied 

With each blink 

and shift of his soft gaze. 

Now she was one, 

Now another, 

New with each moment, 

always and never changing. 

In the distant dusky dim 

Of one bright strong candle, 

Every woman was there, 

All of woman was there, 

And always, it was her 

—his muse. 

They had been close since they met, and quickly their comfortable, knowing familiarity grew into love. They had spent a month and a half exploring the intricacies and delicacies of the bond that had seemed to bloom full and ripe at their first meeting. That evening, as they sat and talked, it had seemed to both of them as though they had been friends and lovers for many years. It was like no experience either of them had ever had before, and it had launched a whirlwind romance that took them both, as well as all their friends, by surprise.

Now things began to calm a bit, everyone settling into the reality of this wonder of romance that had so unexpectedly sprung up full-blown and magical. It appeared to be much more than the whirlwind fling that some of their friends expected.

Tonight was a quiet night spent at home. He had cooked and rubbed her feet by the fire, and the evening had settled into dim light and soft words and quiet thoughts of pleasure and tenderness. He was very close to her now—a little too close for his middle-aged eyes to focus well, and the light was dim and soft and wavering. One candle flickered gently from across the room, and cast a remarkable mystery across her features. For a fleeting moment, he did not recognize her. Then the soft light shifted almost imperceptibly, and her features danced softly with it.

As he watched, she became and became and became again. For as long as he watched her there in the candlelight, her features seemed to shift and transform her being with the changing. He was in the presence of a most remarkable blessing. His muse was revealed plainly before his eyes. He had seen this vision several times before during the past month with her, but it had been transient and fleeting before—a mere flicker of the changeling panorama of feminine mystery and beauty that unfolded before him now.