The Vigil
the vigil
where were you
in those seamless days when
spirit was saying farewell
to its body
floating away
as a ship out to sea
into the sunset all red and gold
like the leaves
outside the hospital window.
did you know I was there
that last night
touching you, holding on to you
I told the tales of us
vaguely remembered obscure things
about our lives
I inspected your hands
like pale white lilies they rested on your chest
every nail and crease accounted for
so I could keep them in mine
when loneliness crept in
you did not move
with the exception of your chest
rising and falling in noisy protest
against the sea building in your lungs
where were you
when I left near dawn
you must have known
some how sensed the lack of presence
because you left too.
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