Gathering Green Poem by Linda Marie Van Tassell

She gathers green in the hem of her dress,
remembering blue skies with hints of rain,
roses contained within a Bible press
whose lifeless petals are all that remain.
So many dreams that she birthed and she lost,
so many ashes that fall from her lips -
the bridges she burned, the people she crossed,
the ill-fated voyage of a thousand ships.

She wrestles with hope in gardens of green
among the white pines and cushiony moss.
She walks with the night, unheard and unseen,
treading headwinds of incredible loss.
Sad words spun into a sweater of fog
clings to her shoulders like a mourning dove.
Needles of faith, shattered heart, broken cog -
her heart is a graveyard of grief and love.

Evenfall whispers like breath against skin.
She is unraveled by its haunting touch
and hugs herself, the little girl within.
Who knew the past could disturb her this much?
The moon surrenders its luminous light
to a bank of clouds that stems from the coast,
her silhouette bathed in shadows of night,
gathering green like an emerald ghost.