Anniversary

Tomorrow came   and so did I   to
a vivid memory of you     your already faded tattoos

  the alto sax I drew
forever pinned to your side     like I was for a time

Angelo below your ankle
   orange sea turtle   I named after my childhood hero
 You shortened it   made pretend it stood for something different

Most days they stayed  hidden     like us from the sun
  locked under layers
 the way you have to dress in the Midwest

 but I was there when they first got wet

   cream on black on cream
a thin layer of ink   describes a curve
 we form our bodies around     it     each other

You used   to play jazz   out your alto sax
and I would kiss  the one on your skin
pretend I could play it     or my bass
  the deep E's drops to deeper D's
 and  hang   in this hollow space

 I never had an hard shell case for anything   I loved

  to write you the words   you were against
my prose   poems     even more of those     I kept
to myself     and        carved the ink into my chest

I always burns this time of year