Emmjay

It’s lonely
But less lonely
Than a crowded bar
With cocktail mixers colder and more hostile
Than a Pap smear.

She rolls the mouse
Two steps short of autopilot
And past her eyes fly the hopes and fears
And off-white lies
In their desperate dash to get to first base

Will she accept the phoney advertisements
Even when she sees them
For what they are ?

Look.

Thousands of tall, dark, handsome, fun-loving
Well-educated, athletic, well-travelled, literate, art-loving, rich men
Somehow still unattached and looking for…

What ?

Moonlight walks on long, deserted beaches ?
Swimming in crystal waters by sun drenched lagoons ?
Languid afternoons swinging in a double hammock under gently wafting palm trees ?

When is the point of no return ?
When the ache for companionship,
For connection,
For love to give and to receive
Gives way to the resignation

Of the doubtful blind date
The tasteless dinner
The tiresome cross examination
The loveless root

The regret.
The closing lie.
And the resolution that loneliness
Is better unshared.