Transitional Friend Poem by Lonnie Hicks

He:

'I did not come to catch or cause
tears, ' he said
'I'm here to rescue them.'

She:
'I'm hoping not to take advantage
of you here
of you as kind friend
but my heart-beat is fading
and truthfully
I need
a man's voice
and the gentle reassurance
that I still retain
a bit of my womanhood-
that it did not leave
with his departure-
and broken as I now feel
speaking truthfully
I can only see
you as transitional friend
who's loved me deeply
over these many years
but I cannot offer you the love
you seek.'

He:
'I sense that' he said
'but hope that in time
you'll grow to love me;
that in time
I'll replace him
in your grieving heart;
that a new love
will grow between us
more intense
than yours with him.
That is the hope, ' he said
'of
many of us
transitional friends.'

It is often said that two individuals
must be friends first
before love comes;
but it is also true
that transitional friends
seldom become Lover New
because
a too hastily liason
based upon vulnerable circumstance,
lonliness and need
most times only prolongs agony
and
in the end
does not satisfy;
and loss grows
now
likely to include
both Former Lover
and
a new
Former Friend.

Better to sail the Seas of Alone
than allow a good friend to take
that ride with you
only to see him or her to drown
for love of you.