Winter’s Beginning Ends

Posted byauthorstewPosted inpoetryTags:, , ,
Background photo by Andri Kyrychok on Unsplash; Foreground photo by Me
The evening’s moon shone upon the newly fallen snow
My love lay beneath it
Fresh as the breath of a new dawn, pure white in color
No trace of the stain of my tears
I fear to tread upon it, to mar such perfect a blanket
Yet the words echo
The reflection of the moon’s light pales and dims in memory
They shoot the white girl first.

I watched in horror from too far away in safety
Yet the echo reached my ears
Red drops splatter in pretty patterns across the wall
Artist see art even in horror
I could not run, towards or away. My feet buried in sand
How I got away I don’t know
Pundits in other lands called it inevitable, just another lesson
History has failed us, but no matter.

The present the caretaker of our past sins, expresser of lamentations 
Yet my tears lay dry on my cheek
The cemetery lay on flat land, headstones lined up like teeth 
A crooked smile of death
The chill of winter lays cold and silent, not even the wind dares to disturb
The tales the dead whisper
I came not to say goodbye but instead to say see you soon
I was looking for a quiet place to die.

This is for a dVerse prompt: “I am sharing below some short opening sentences for you to use as the closing line of your poem.”

There were several opening lines listed. I happened to use three of them, one each for the last line of each stanza of my poem as well as the closing line. “They shoot the white girl first.” Paradise by Toni Morrison, “History has failed us, but no matter.” Pachinko by Min Jin Lee and “I was looking for a quiet place to die.” Paul Auster, The Brooklyn Follies. I hope you enjoy! 😊

Published by authorstew

C. Stuart Lewis creates poems with feeling, intelligence and sex appeal. His short stories and books focus on characters that feel real in real world situations. Originally from the United States he now resides in Ontario, Canada. Check out his webpage at TheAuthorStew.ca

20 thoughts on “Winter’s Beginning Ends”

  8. Excellent incorporation of all three lines into this tragic story, Stew, and some  phrases make it less horrific, such as ‘Red drops splatter in pretty patterns across the wall’ and the ‘crooked smile of death’.

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