Old Maps

The old maps will
now remain folded
frayed and worn
at the edges
possibly ready to tear
at the creases
if I dare open them again

roads
towns
railways
rivers
points of interest
our youthful mountains
all those trails and contours
are turned neatly
toward each other
as if gone forever

but we still see the sky
not drawn on any map
luminous today
and declaring
your continued presence.

Dean Baltesson is a poet and musician living in Victoria, BC, Canada. He is currently working on a volume of poetry entitled There Must be Words To Describe This. His poetry and can be found in a number of online and print literary journals or on his recent CD Covering Ground.