I Make

By Neesha Rumi

I make drama like I make

Carbon dioxide

I make drama in the middle

Of my day

And you – Passer-by – have a role in it

I make merry like I make

Bad bread –

Burnt crisp at the corners –

Your mouth twitches – just a bit –

As you eat it

You try to say it’s good

But all you manage is to say

That you love me

I’m not bitter at all!

I make tears like I make

A private phone call –

Hushed and whispered

You like my voice like that

You said so yourself

It’s like I make that voice

Just for you

I make restless movements like I make bad habits –

Over sixty days

I make myself nervous with thoughts of you

Being gone

I make coffee like you make an impression –

Strong – unforgettable –

Enigmatic

(Is that a hint of alcohol?

Maybe – you seem to say)

You make love the way an artist

Makes an abstract painting

Or do you make love like a surgeon

Operates?

I make love like I make mistakes –

Forever with the wrong people

And I make time – I always make time

For you

By Neesha Rumi