I left the light lit
At the foot of the stairs,
So when you stumbled in
You'd see me sitting there.
I pushed your slovenly hair aside
Like parting an unkempt veil,
And I saw the wreckage in your eyes...
A ship choked in its own sails.
I kissed your eyes and laid
your cheek upon my knee
but like a fibrous braid,
You frayed in front of me.
So I sorted through all I could,
every disparate thread of you,
and if but only, I would
piece you together anew.
I saw your eyes dim
out, and lose their luster;
Stones that once were gems.
For what reason, I cannot muster.
The leave-taking was postponed
but only for awhile.
Soon, I knew you'd be gone,
borne away miles and miles.
In the interim, you browsed the fields
as my ghostly confederate.
We wantonly danced until
you left for weather more acclimate.
Then, I smelled you in the balmy night,
a roses' musk,
a beetle's blood,
And for you, I lit the light.
