44
Hotel Room Sex
You have a husband back at home to whom you swore
to love, honour and obey – he doesn’t ask for more
but now that you’re away, you look a bit perplexed
we both have hotel rooms perhaps you’re wondering what’s next

you’ve mainly been loyal but linger on the work mainly
and wonder if I notice or your should state it more plainly
but I notice and it’s fabulous, like everything illicit
in which the moment guides us and in which we are complicit

it’s only hotel room sex
it doesn’t last but it’s not meaningless
this temporary pleasure
might be all that is redeeming us
loneliness can answer
certain questions we might ask
but in your hotel room
we will put it to another task
unbounded but convention
and forgetting all our promises
we’re free

This freedom’s only momentary, soon we’ll have to leave
as if from our obligations we were granted a reprieve
and with sweetness we’ll remember or with bitterness forget
sweet sticky anticipation and the sour smell of sweat

and my wife won’t notice the new distance in my eyes
there’s been so much distance which we no longer disguise
there is little solace in the fact that we’ll forget
or that the force of pleasure outweighs remnants of regret

it’s only hotel room sex
it doesn’t last but it’s not meaningless
this temporary pleasure
might be all that is redeeming us
loneliness can answer
certain questions we might ask
but in your hotel room
we will put it to another task
unbounded but convention
and forgetting all our promises
we’re free
Guitar and Voice: Jacob Wren
Recording: Radwan Ghazi Moumneh (hotel2tango)