Hands clasped after years of adventures
shared. I could almost see you and me  
back under the canopy trees. I wonder if you
remember now that moment I was yours.

I could feel the itch to run to you
as the clock scratched seconds into silence.
I smiled at the idea of waiting to be with you
and the adventures we would share.

One would think I would have
been use to you by then, but I could
never tire of poking jokes, and flirt fights
that we shared. I longed to see you there.

At the end of petals and church aisle, I found
the clock stop. My breathing fade as
your eyes meet mine. You reached for me
under a canopy of trees. I didn’t wonder

then what you thought, because I saw
it in your eyes. They swelled
over with love and life,
as you ask me to be your wife.

You picnic alone just to feel the warmth
Of the sun, then hide in the shadows
To watch the robin-red roses sway and
Try to dance in the breeze. You smile lifelessly
At those others consider close to you-

You are like a hollow shell, but they see far
From that. You know they are right because you feel
The nights of endless, restless sleeplessness; the apathy
You hold for yourself. It is a worthless weight
Wrapped across your body, and you put it there. They value

You, they care about you, so they scrub free that filth
They see you put there. They try to feed you, include you,
Make you see, so one day when you wake
From this you can live, but right now you crave sleep.