The Specter Poem by B. V. Dahlen

There in the shadows
Beyond where I see,
A small child is standing
And smiling at me.

Her hair fine and silken,
In that corner it glows.
She always stays hidden,
And no one else knows

That she’s ever with me
Each day of my life.
She shares all my good times,
All my sadness and strife.

Her presence unearthly.
Imagined or real?
Dictated by fact,
Or the way that I feel.

For this is my baby,
This child of my womb
Who never will grow up.
Who I’ll never watch bloom.

This teasing bright phantom
Can not fill my arms,
And only in my dreams
Can display her sweet charms.

All those “what ifs” and “maybes”
That at times fill my heart
Can not answer my questions
Can’t say why we’re apart.

I thought time would erase
This deep longing I feel.
How I wanted to know you,
Understand how you feel,

To watch you and guide you
As you grew and matured,
A job every parent
Just presumes is assured.

But I don’t have that privilege,
And I can’t hold you near.
I can only glimpse shadows
As I brush off a tear.