Beautiful

Beautiful

By Joshua Chandler 

You’re beautiful like, 

Um.

A siamese fighting fish!

Um. Why are these “lightning whits” 

So hard to come by?

Beautiful like a bow tie

Shown high, contrast against blue sky,

Red on your bed-head black-dotted tilt

Said, “I don’t know why, but I felt sad.” 

Thinking, “what would it be like?” or graduated 

To the next high-healed tip-toe

Where never I’d been quick or quite-slow, 

At the stop light, I thought maybe I’d go so 

I smiled for a while thinking “wow. 

What if?”

That bowl looks kinda empty 

And you’re beautiful like cereal. 

Choose your favorite kind!

That kind. 

Cheerio bets raise the small blind.

Rewind. You can’t look like that at the table!

This aint to fairy laden fable!

What do you got?

Two pair, ace high? What up now miss hot-shot!

Beautiful like “all in”

Hokey pokey style

Shaken win

Quaken thin in their deep-glassed faces

Beautiful like clean, crisp places. Sweater weather. 

Sin sidestepped, 

Curve on their cases. 

Slur to the basement, watch your head, 

Curl round the corner and slip to the study. 

Feel for the light switch, not alone, 

With a buddy. 

You’re beautiful like teamwork - 

You and me in my mind 

A little longer to switch find, 

But Bam! Flood illumination. 

Height of adoration

Hide in your presence

Beautiful in essence. 

Beautiful like fireworks!

At least when compared to lights I didn’t know were so dim. 

Say a prayer. Sing a hymn. 

Bright beauty emblazoned! 

LIke pikachu on meth. 

Time lost a moment, heart stopped, 

Gasped for breath. 

Then!

Well, 

Refer to line two. 

The sunrise, over mountain highs 

Are beautiful like you. 

You are beautiful like lady bugs. 

Dainty dread of katie thugs. 

Hung up homie with a wonder was

What wasn’t what I want wouldn’t wake me cuz!

I can’t. Can’t count. But if I could come out of Comatose, 

I’d crumble, quite like melba toast

And count you mine, sweet simbios.

Is this making any sense? 

Good. 

You’re beautiful like

I don’t know! 

Come close, we’ll discuss this

Real. slow.

Every detail. 

Tiara tip to tipie-toe

You’re beautiful 

Like unexpected backflips

Like sips of liquid sunshine

Like specks of dew on lily pedals 

Like tiny ceramic balerinas

Like specific, warm shades of blue

Like realizing it’s not quite time to wake up yet

And falling gracefully back to sleep. 

You’re beautiful

Mhm.. 

Definitely. 

Like the dancing reflection of fire in a rain drop. 

Like fall flooded forests of western Iowa. 

Like Nebraska sunsets

And California dreamin’ 

Like snowflakes

And romantic getaway schemin’. 

You are beautiful. 

Not like Shakespearean soliloquy. 

Like peaceful, post-apocalyptic solemnity. 

Like seeing so clearly by the dawn’s early light what so proudly we hailed at the twilights last gleaming

You’re beautiful like America! 

Not the country. 

The feeling. 

You’re more beautiful than my best imagination of you. 

And that’s the most beautiful thing I can think of.