Richard Hoffman

A D L

Aphrodisia

Love’s language is hyperbole, but whispered,
sibilant similes and promises sotto voce.
It’s easy to imagine you've misheard,

the form and content clash, create this weird
distortion like an echo or a tape delay.
Love’s language is hyperbole, but whispered.

On which do you place emphasis: The words?
Or the breath? The farfetched or the foreplay?
It’s easy to imagine you've misheard

when objectivity has disappeared
and your lover is getting further carried away.
Love’s language is hyperbole, but whispered