Forgotten Wife

Forgotten Wife - WHY? I’ve asked the question, A thousand times or more, What more could I have done? As I really didn’t understand What changed? What had changed this man? That man I first married. Ever a handsome fella Dressed in khaki clothe, Fresh-faced, Gentle, caring, Considerate loving husband, Before going off To that stinken foreign war, Off to an unknown uncertainty. But the return of my warrior With loving arms a beckoning, For him Discharged and released Into this brand new horizon, Subtle changes first unnoticed In having my man returned Expecting a life of wedded bliss And endless joy of peace. However I the wife Began to have this battle Of fighting an unknown war Where bouts of anger, Sulkiness, Depression, Suspicions easily aroused, Periods of unexplained darkness Of something bottled within Easily the order of the day. His children who knew naught Of happenings abound, From a father who found Everyday faults so many Drove a wedge Between parenthood And the siblings of his groin Forcing them out into a world Of the unexpected Out there Into a misunderstanding world of unknown. As loyal wife of long ago, Taken vows “till death us do part” Now a suffer in total silence, Tormented by the grief Sometimes in disbelief, This deep-seated anger, Which smoldered Like an un-erupted overdue volcano Deep inside the belly, Every day became like torture In trying to understand What really changed my man? As I now do sit On this carpet Of lush green grass, A lonely tear rolls down Head bowed In deep respect, For me now a reality, He has left the place Truly gone forever, Off to his lastingly resting place And for this old soldier boy ‘Tis for him a much better rest Than all the confusion of his mind. I gaze! I fix my eyes on his bronze plaque His name, Rank and serial number inscribed An azalea grows in a terracotta pot Marking the spot Where they lowered the casket Three days after that fateful day, The day they buried my man. I being the widow, The mother, And once his wife Must now have inner strength, “O God I wish I had more, But why Lord oh why! When he returned, I still ask the question What did change? My lover, My husband, My man!