Tongue

In Rio I stripped
a wobbly excuse
of high school English
to verbs and gestures,
on Bali to nouns and laughs.

Because that's the way
they dance,
in motion and sign language
or in stances and winks.

Kyoto spoke in the spaces
between words, coy smiles
and not so coy glances,
while Venice was all punctuation
and kinetics, but what else
would you expect?

Lingua Franca is on TV,
a clumsy denominator
on the tip of every tongue
that wish to speak.

Good enough to steal a kiss
in every port, to say goodbye
and promise to never forget.