When I Leave You
[A love poem for my wife of 43 years]
When I leave you...
it won't be out of anger,
it won't be out of jealousy,
it won't be for another woman,
and it won't be for freedom.
When I leave you,
it won't be with grace--
it will be hard, hard to do.
I could try to fight it,
but with what power?
Taken quick or slowly,
I'll still be taken--
out of this world,
out of your life....
Never out of your heart,
I know,
I'm planted there,
a Gibraltar till time's end.
Yet...yet I fear for the weight,
the heaviness on you:
all the times you'll need a touch,
or miss my breath
on the nape of your neck....
When the stars weep,
when songbirds die,
then, only then,
will my love be left
by your lonely side.
Do I yet know how much I love you?
Will my soul chant in mourning for you?
Will it long for this world,
this world of night and day
only because you are still in it?
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