for all we know

This song occupies that lovely space before kissing, or maybe after kissing, but either way, the space of departing from the one you love and not knowing if you’ll see them again. “A kiss that is never tasted, forever and ever is wasted”. Indeed. But this space is cause for shyness, and often I don’t lean in for that kiss when I probably should, and this leads to many open-ended dates, conversations, and looks of uncertainty. Once I like you, I don’t want to lose you. I don’t want to risk the chance of never seeing you again. So I make plans that include you. I schedule a friendship that is nice, lovely even, but it precludes us from tasting kisses. And I’m not as positive as Billie Holiday. I rarely have her casual attitude to love. She knows that there’ll be other loves and a future of many kisses. I need to take a page from her book. I need to step back and imagine tomorrow’s kisses; those tasted and wasted, real or fantastic. And of course there'll be more lingering on the streets, on train platforms, and after final words drop. “We won’t say goodnight until the last minute”. Indeed. There we are in the Métro, talking quietly and letting trains pass. Like clockwork they slide on by. I say I’ll take the next one, the next one... okay, the last one. And of course, I want your lips on mine, but they brush each side of my face. It almost feels right. And I slip away from you wondering if that was the last kiss. It’s always the last kiss. But for now I wake up in the wrong continent. “For all we know, this may be a dream”.