Decay ~

I saw those autumn leaves fall 

and thought of all the good things 

lying decayed 

in our years of togetherness.

In the heartbreak of passing 

lies the laundered lie of memory:

tired evenings bring reconciliations,

and autumns always feign warmth.

But in the crystal of a cold day,

shadows lie like fallen bodies,

and everything we held as alive 

is moribund in masquerade.

We know our togetherness

is a haunting of old lies,

and behind every smile we share 

you conjure the worst of my illusory life.

And thus we walk hand in hand 

over the carcasses of our hopes, 

the meadows and the flowers 

turning slowly into ghosts.