September 2001 Entry -- Turning Over a New Leaf

Tides

There was beauty
and sadness, yours --
some sweet poignancy,
like when a leaf turns brown,
because it knows it is about
to fall on the wind
and die.

I can still see the look of fear
on your face, the mask you wore
to frighten your demons,
who nonetheless offered you
the gift of some remote despair,
flesh-ridden and dissipated
like smoke, eviscerated.

I was afraid, too, scared of
the voices that screamed at you
to scream at me because you had to
survive, so I had to watch what we had
slip like the tide, from sadness
into the past.

Copyright 2001, Rune