A day of gladness,
of crystallized relationship shouted to their world.
of eager exclamation, snapped photos,
excited babble, rippling laughter.
of funny stories, gentle glances,
graceful dances, whispered secrets.
smiles. and flowers and frills and fancy food.
a day
of celebration.
Yet underneath, behind
polite faces
I sense the flowing sorrows.
the widow, remembering happier married years.
the betrayed husband, smarting from the pain of divorce.
the single girl, longing for love and fulfilment.
the bachelor, flitting, endlessly unfulfilled, between relationships.
the bereaved parents, mourning the lost future of a beloved son,
the father, suddenly now an outsider.
the mother, longing for a return to child parenting, baby loving times.
Bitter. Sweet.
And I too am sad, on what should be a joyous day, because
sadness shouts louder than joy.
undercurrents
cut icy at my heart.
my spirit celebrates only with an absorbed heaviness.
