Stream of consciosness...1

Stream….

We called them pinnarets
Fluttering of our eyelashes against each other’s faces
I was 16, you were 18, 20 some years ago
Lost on the streets of Kowloon
Pimps grabbing you, whores grabbing me
“Dew le Moh”, they shouted
“Fuck your mother”, as we laughed and pulled away
I knew no other girl like you, my twin
without fear, laughter so manic
it kept the tattoed triad thugs at bay
you found me that day, sitting by the harbor
a stolen bottle and Henry Miller in my hands
you asked for a swig, I looked up
and saw you
beautiful is an understatement,
Eurasian eyes that looked into me
Long black hair that fell over my shoulders as you reached for the Jameisons
Life pulsating from every pore
Henry Miller and 1920s Paris forgotten
With my own Paris beckoning me to explore Kowloon with her.

We held hands, ran through the streets
I took you to my friends, a Fillippina street walker
Who would feed me and buy me booze while I watched her kids
While she worked.
The kids loved you, and my friend told me to be careful
“she is beautiful, she can make you madder than you are,”
“take you to a place where you can not come back.”
I laughed; I was invincible
I wanted love, adventure, and you were it
I took you to my friend Chin’s, on the east side of Chunk King
He made us soup, while he fixed himself with the best White money can buy
You looked on, unfazed; I smiled, falling hard
A woman without fear, a partner in adventure
We walked deeper into the everlasting night that was Kowloon
Past the pimps, hookers and junkies
To the Go Go Bar where I could drink for free
With a mattress in the basement, with my books next to it

On nights when I could not go home to Hong Kong
This was my home; and now it was yours
This is where you taught me how to give pinnarets
Butterfly kisses, prayers to the gods
This is where you taught me how to speak
Without words,
How to love with a touch
How to draw without chalk,
how to paint without colours
How to know each other in silence
How to be a man with a woman.
Next morning, I woke up with a note next to me.
It was unsigned and said “I Love You.”
I was happy, ready for another day.
Walking the streets, making friends and learning life.
I have not thought of you for 20 years
Until today; it must be the rain, making day into night
It must be because I miss my wife, a woman as beautiful as you
As mad as me, someone who stayed after the night
And who taught that I needed no other.
I think of you and I am happy
Lived a life without regrets
Maybe
Except one,
I wish you had signed your name on the note
For, in the magic of that night
I forgot to ask your name.
To you, my nameless one
I pray you are happy
As I am.