Band Poem by Liberty Smart

A gold band wraps my finger
Like a hug from one soon left
He always loved me – I am sure of this
His pain-filled hours have passed now
And once strong arms can no longer lift
I remember them on the day
Many years behind us, now
When first I wore this ring
Strong arms that lifted me into our new life together
Enclosing me inside a fleshy ring of promise
Forever
An elder-time has passed since then
And I clutch a strengthless hand
Clawed in the silence of our last, loneless moment
Before the inevitable end of us
And the re-emergence of I