Dark Water Poem by Brian Mayo

You arrived
like the promise of summer rain
and
for a short time
I lived
barefoot and free, again.
For a few days
I knew
what it was to feel, again.
To care,
again.

But we wear the past like chains
broken hearts dangle like forgotten charms-
and courage is often the first
to fall.

I heard you driving away as I walked Sam.
I couldn’t turn-
I didn’t want you to see me crying.
Because, you see, I missed you already.

And, after you were gone,
I came home
and
I sat on the couch, looking at Sam.
He looked back at me and wagged his tail
but his heart wasn’t in it.

I knew my careless words had hurt you,
I thought about your reaction–
your pain, breaking my heart all over again.

And,
for the first time,
I felt so very alone,
and the meaninglessness of my empty life
washed over me
like dark, dark water.