Upon Seeing a Friend Once Again
After Too Long a Time

A Poem by Laurence David Sterling III

It was the smile that betrayed the truth.
It was those all revealing curls of my lips
That stated without a word spoken
That I was overjoyed to see you.
One could state convincingly that
It could have been the twinkling in my eyes
Or the sudden quickening of my breathing
But, it was that unmistakable smile
That divulged my joy.
It was the sudden upturn of lip and nose
The flash of teeth and gum
That betrayed the truth.
For there we were
Face to face
Heart to heart
Hand in hand
Once more.
In that moment
The joy of seeing you
Sprang up so rapidly
And so powerfully
From within me
That I could not
For protocol's sake
Control my face

Star Trek: Picard's Flute Song From "The Inner Light"
from Paul's World