.
We are fencing, you know.
You with your cheery countenance
acting
like a friend but keeping me –
my whole being –
at épée’s end.
Shall I heed your eyes
that challenge me to engage,
or your words
that hold me just beyond
wherever a comfortable distance
might be?
.
From the Perimeter . . . 
such an interesting conundrum! that you directly address the fencer (opponent?) helps make this effective. i like that the poem ends without a resolution. use of the fencing metaphor works so well.
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Thank you : ) I’m very glad that you like and appreciate this.
~ Peri
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