Of Reluctant Relinquishments...

…and so then, when the sun comes up

Glazing with gold the dangling leaf

And the dew-lipped earth; a silver cup

Mirrors its eons of passion and grief

When the song-bird flits from its shady perch

To herald the morn awakening fair

From maple and willow, from elm and birch

They warble and fill the virgin air

With their song; you will not be here

…and just because I taste your name

Where once your kisses filled my mouth

And just because all seems the same

Against my east, west, north and south

And just because there is no grave

On which to shed my silent screams

And just because the heart is brave

In spite of torn and tattered dreams

That once we shared; you will not be here

…and all the ‘something mores’ we crave

If the raw, raging truth were told

And all the blessings that we have

Will not keep us from growing old

And all the ‘never mores’ we knew

Meld into fabrics of the heart

Where they remain, an avenue

Strewn recklessly with precious art

Called memories; you will not be here

…but you will be where all the rest

Like you have gone to fill the past

Briefly my love, you were the best

But now your void is iron-cast

I held you closely and we danced

But quietly you slipped away

Without a tender backward glance

You disappeared into the gray

And come what may you will never be here again

...for you are Yesterday

© Janet Martin

Righteous Brothers; Unchained Melody
J~