Sadness – Page 55 – Iron Haiku

in grape arbor
a cardinal seeks shelter
from the driving rain
–
secluded
deep within
my wine glass

drowning in darkness
heaved out and left on the rocks
gasping for the sun
–
sinking…
yearning for
the surface

I wake intent on
fighting an uphill battle
I know I will lose
–
high tide
a turtle shell
lies empty

bandaged wedding vows
broken trust slowly healing
despite all the pain
–
loss…
mostly
regained

a feather’s tip nicks
the torn paper’s ragged edge
bleeding bright black ink
–
an obligation
the contract
signed in blood

living in the past
reaching out for the echoes
of what used to be
–
wistful
remembering the way
things never were

I drag my feet through
the dust of relationships
that I’ve left behind
–
shuffling
forward into
an empty future

a dying ember
brightened by love’s final breath
at last extinguished
–
autumn
the last robin
falls silent

watching while you sleep
your gentle breath, warm and sweet
so easily stilled
–
echoes of
silence spread
throughout the night

who I am is just
in between who I was and
who I will become
–
my future
hinges on keeping
my past promises