Another black night,
another
few
steps.....
another sunless dawn.
Evr'y day
the darkness
of the shadows
beneath your eyes
grows.
They
echo
that which lies
within.
Night
approaches you,
wrings
the last bit of light
from your voice.
Silence.
In the same way
I know,
somehow,
when I touch
the errant life
rising
from the ground
that it cannot live,
so I know,
with surety,
that you are dying.
It is of little matter
that it is not
the broken
shell
of body
that surrenders...
no,
it is of
little matter.
Ragged,
empty weeping
wakes me:
Some one
who was my friend
grieves
in the dark.
In the sudden stillness
of my heart,
I understand
you
are saying
good-bye.
Not
to me.
To
yourself.
Silence.
Again,
silence.
Another black night,
another
few
steps.....
another sunless dawn.
As if
we were Home,
and
t'were a morning
of hopeful Spring,
I fold the cloak's worn
comfort
about you....
careful....
careful
not to touch
That
which binds you
to this bitter Road
(for then the death
in your eyes
turns
back to life:
life driven
by evil,
chained to a
single
thought).
From somewhere
in memories
buried by sorrow,
I find a smile,
in case you might see,
and hold your hand,
first against the slow
beat
of my heart,
then
against
your own.
Do you feel it?
That river
that runs yet
inside
us both,
that current
that holds
the thread of our lives
entwined
with the tapestry of the World.
I see the small
startled
light
quicken
behind your eyes.
There is pain
there
and
shame
and despair.
If I could,
I would hold you
to life.
If I could,
I would bear
what you
no longer can.
But that
would kill you,
too,
wouldn't it?
For just this little
moment,
the warmth of my hand
shelters
the unfeeling
cold
of yours.
Please.
While there
is yet time,
before the darkness
shutters
the last of your light,
tell me
farewell.
Another black night,
another
few
steps.....
another sunless dawn.
