Janus Head

ambiguity of thinking…

I am not who you think,
grey-haired for safe-keeping,
single-minded with my hidden heart.
 
Something I did not tell,
a broken thread, a casual
remark – say, a tiny spark
 
has set my mind alight,
fanning the flames
while you were asleep.
 
No dream here. Double I see
and I am, a Janus head
as found in ancient Roman temples
 
reaching in two directions.
Am I the reflection of myself,
or a distorted image in its flow
 
that proofs its undertow,
each advance complemented
by a retreat, every rise
 
transformed into a fall?
Am I in search of both ways
for multiple answers?
 
I am nothing and all,
a body and a mind and eyes
that judge distances
 
from you to me,
from my hands to your face,
from yin to yang.