Two Firsts (2 short poems)

By Joseph K. Wells

FIRST DAWN 

That dawn, 
beachside after
the wedding night,
the sky was a canvas
like the bride’s forehead- 
bright red smeared across,
sindoor* spread carelessly, 
wet air and warm breath,
filling both their hearts 
with memories to last
a few lives beyond  
their own.

*Sindoor is a red cosmetic powder worn as a dot on the forehead or along the parting of the hair by Hindu women, especially as a sign of marriage.

FIRST KISS

Do you
remember how
my lips turned red,
same shade as yours, 
as I tasted your lipstick 
when mine pressed hard 
against yours on the glass 
wall, curved so delicately,
smudged slightly, when
for the first time, we
shared a goblet of
Malbec?

Joseph K. Wells is an American poet and healthcare executive, originally from India. Since 2016, his poems have found a home in over two dozen journals and lit mags internationally. A selection of his published works is available at https://paperonweb.wordpress.com/ .

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