The woman passed me on the street,
Walked by me in the snow.
This chance encounter made me think
Of what it meant to know.

She made me think of one other
That I thought that I knew.
I came so close, but then the walls
Just wouldn't let me through.

So these two women, strange but true
Were equal on this day.
They both were very close to me
And yet, both far away.

The first one meant nothing to me.
The second was my friend.
I did not know the second though
When it came to the end.

She came to me with her problems.
Answers, in me she'd find.
I knew this time would come when she
Could not open her mind.

Those walls had been up far too long,
Now permanent, they stayed.
And nothing could break those blocks down,
They would not be waylayed.

The closest that we came that day,
That brilliant day in fall,
Was looking at each other through
The small cracks in that wall.

Not love, nor hate, nor sweet embrace
Could let me see her whole.
That barrier always obscured;
It always took its toll.

So yes, these two young females are
Picked out from the same lot.
The reason now, of course you see
Is that I knew them not.

10/22/2006

Posted on 10/22/2006
Copyright © 2024 Jay Davenport