twisted rope of reds and grey
years defy
the strength of time
lovers lie in sunset hues
a cedar bed
beneath the pines

crickets fiddle
songs I know
shadows rush this empty place
thirteen moons
ten thousand lives ~
wrapped in linen
mortal lace

heard your name
just yesterday
someone whispered ~
lest I hear
more than grace
my will to know
what of love can disappear

eyes remember stories told
hands to reach
are folded still
brittle rain of destinies ~
scarlet leaves
the truth conceal

but somewhere close
they split the night ~
as storm clouds chase the edge of day
twilight leans into the soul
another stone
to roll away

Author’s Note: Alzheimers is a thief without
conscience, robbing its victims of a future warmed
by memory.