Joe Casey

in blue grass in blue grass i hear your name whispered in the secret inflections of languages yet unlearnt. in blue grass you are the passing of day and night, the surprise of cloud and shadow, the motion of light in water. time has marked you as she has marked me, we two harried and hectored, that arrow begun her downward curve. in blue grass run these walls your bones, these rivers your blood, these hills your body. • i have forgotten myself among the great grey towers of cities and the streets and the press of blank faces. i have forgotten myself in that place of dust, have loosed my soul into vanity and empty promise. I have forgotten myself and the custom of my youth, my arrogant ways and my foolish passions. i am called home now by that which I cannot face: my mother is dying, settling up accounts. • you are there one day, family of sorts, sharing this thing that courses beneath our flesh. a phantom, you who stayed and whose courage far outpaced mine, even as I thought myself your better. in blue grass you dance the ancient dance of harvest, hunt and hearth, casting life to ground even as you pluck life from it. we speak to each other those mumbling things of desire and wish and dream, are become doer and deed. • in blue grass i feel the touch of your eyes, lips, fingers, the touch of memory, of the past that could have been. in blue grass i lay with you and we are become those walls, those rivers, those hills, knit close and closer still. In the secret hollows of your stalwart body i lose myself and am found again. in blue grass you have come to me, my salvation and my redemption.

Hello, all ... I'm just now seeing this post; many apologies for a very belated response. I haven't had an account with GA for quite some time; a difference of opinion on certain matters came between us. I do have some stories over on IOMFATS under the "Joe Casey" author name, if anyone is interested. I do have many of those stories that were once posted to GA; I can post them here for those who still wish to read them. Now I'm just trying to figure out the Wattpad reference; to the best of my knowledge, I never posted any of my work there. Which leaves the questions - who did? Many thanks - Joe

It's strange to see this seven years after it was posted, but I've only just come across this post. Firstly, a very belated thanks to all of you for the praise; the story was an interesting exercise and one that I enjoyed. If anyone is at all still interested in reading the story, it is now hosted at IOMFATS - with the same title - under the "Joe Casey" author name, along with other stories. Some of the story's formatting got lost in translation, however ... so be patient. Here's the link: https://iomfats.org/storyshelf/hosted/joe-casey/shorts/summer-world.html I no longer have an account with Gay Authors. Again - many, many thanks! Joe