I saw a woman in a graveyard
walking all alone

She headed silently to a corner
where sat her father's stone

The chilling December wind
tugged at her coat and hair

She came to wish him a Merry Christmas
and to show him she still cared

She placed the silk flowers on his stone
as her tears kissed the earth

She traced her fingers along the words
and lingered on his birth

She paused to catch her breath
and to remember when

He tickled her and held her so high
when he was her best friend

Then her memories shifted
to a later, more troubled time

When he yelled and beat her mother
and drank hard liquor and cheap wine

She placed her fingers
on the date of his death

For a moment she thought
she could smell the booze on his breath

Through it all, she remembered
all these things

She remembered his laughter and what
trouble the bottle brings

Not only did she lose her father
but her friend as well

But the drunkard that went with him
Chose the road through hell

04/02/2002

Posted on 04/02/2002
Copyright © 2024 Melina Raven Maness Diebold