“One Tear”

By Melissa Mendelson

I haven’t cried a single tear.
I once drowned in a sea of sorrow.
The taste of salt water stained my face
and covered my lips.
Did they run dry
from all that I lived?
Why now do I feel a tear linger
at a passionate kiss on tv
or death passing across the screen?
Something in my heart stirs.
How long has it been since I felt
a hand caress my face,
a human touch on my skin?
Why does the ghost
of it haunt me?
There might be a time ahead
when my river of tears
will drown me again,
but now all that I see,
all that I feel
is one drop begging
to run free,
begging to feel,
water against my skin.