When she is Gone

by oosh

December 2000 / January 2001

More than the scarlet rose
She left for you that night
More than the little card
That told she loved you so
More than the kiss she scribbled
Below the shopping-list
More even than the turn of the shoulder
In the early light of dawn
When in sweetest frailty
At last she yielded to sleep
Slipping away from you
While still in your embrace
It was that smile
A propos nothing
Those little dimples
That light in the eye
So quickly there,
So soon gone
Her brief life was a lesson
And you were born
Never to forget
That half-remembered smile
And Death
The cruel school-mistress
Every day
Every hour
Teaching you
Teaching you