A Lover's Guide to the Grave by Karen MichelleWhat do you do when you realise it was all an enigma - the waning weeks of autumn?
They giggled and made eyes over steaming cups of coffee, catching the sunlight in their lashes and morning air between their teeth.
Amid the compactus and bookshelves, they danced across the pages of their own
secret romance.
They posed playfully for photos in the crisp air - two amateur artists supervised by the sun, tinged ever so slightly with the frosty embrace of winter and reawakening.
He knew (as she did) these days were numbered, evaporating into June, so he composed love letters in secret, pushing them into hidden corners and pockets of her life -
an emergency chute to cushion their collapse; fire axe to forge a pathway home (break safety glass here).
But the finale was too swift for salvation, and though, like all young lovers, they had prepared their limbs for a more subtle fate - slow burn to fade - they quickly learnt there is no roadmap to heartbreak
08/29/2004 Posted on 08/29/2004 Copyright © 2025 Karen Michelle
Member Comments on this Poem |
Posted by Chris Sorrenti on 08/29/04 at 01:31 PM Captivating read...well expressed reminder that some loves aren't meant to last. Personally, I think the poem would have a more powerful closure by dropping that last line. The previous two lines quite brilliant: they quickly learnt there is no roadmap to heartbreak. |
Posted by Rachelle Howe on 08/31/04 at 05:40 PM Goddamn. My favorite from you for awhile. *grin* C*ock out which'er rock out. |
Posted by Mo Couts on 07/02/11 at 04:44 PM Ahh...the passing of love that we know isn't going to stick around anyway, but we're brave (or crazy, depending upon whom you ask) enough to keep going with it...this is a wonderful rendition of that feeling. |
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