Memories of Strangers by D. Xavier Bari(One Who Fell)
The sparkle off her ring,
unmistakable,
especially in the happy circumstance
of wine and roses,
mutual friends trading vows anew
but he was drawn
to this solemn blonde figure.
As he watched her mingle,
graced elegance, pleasant, and yet
weighed by an unseen burden
which only she knew;
he wondered how the bluest eyes
could be bluer still
distant and troubled.
Where was the owner
of the counterpart
to this gold band (and her heart)
that could leave
such a treasure
alone?
So he asked.
Her husband had been a soldier
she repliedcalmly, steadily.
He decided to leave the service?
No.
And she told him something
that forever changed him,
on a night that changed them both.
The price of freedom revealed.
Vulnerable eyes would weep,
an empathetic heart would comfort
and covet nothing more
in honor of a man he'd never meet.
04/07/2004 Author's Note:
For Michelle
Posted on 04/07/2004 Copyright © 2025 D. Xavier Bari
Member Comments on this Poem |
Posted by Alison McKenzie on 04/08/04 at 06:01 AM I don't know what to say. Except that, in this piece, without saying everything, all was said. |
Posted by Leslie Ann Eisenberg on 04/11/04 at 02:43 AM gorgeous storytelling. you sucked me right in...a very well crafted piece, emotional without being overly sentimental. |
Posted by JD Clay on 05/09/04 at 06:36 PM Your articulate delivery is subtle yet almost overwhelming, Dante. Your eloquent title, conjoined with the sub-title, find their place in retrospect, as do these indelible impression of the heart.
Pe4ce... |
Posted by Dana E Brossard on 02/03/05 at 02:07 PM Wow, this is a great piece. Beautifully done. |
Posted by Joy Sy on 04/22/08 at 09:49 AM The nobility of giving comfort without strings and the remembrance of sacrifices made daily for freedom is told beautifully here. |
Posted by Charlie Morgan on 04/22/08 at 09:31 PM ...true care, empathy, a heart's closure...good write, charlie |
Posted by Philip F De Pinto on 11/14/14 at 05:02 PM powerful summation of an occurrence which renders one on the cusp of speechlessness. |
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