One December night
I saw a paper doll
Standing in the rain...
And I couldn’t believe the sight
The storm did not at all
Tear her apart in vain...
I knew her from some other time
Back when we were too young
And the clouds had yet to collide...
Their church bells did chime
The vows were sung
7 years later she ran to hide...
She doesn’t see me, across the street
She spends her time in the garden
And smiles at the sunshine...
The season warms her bare feet
And the winters harden
And her grace gathers lines...
And the virgin mary grows moss
And sleeps by the sidewalk
But I am ever watchful for her...
In this life if we bear loss
A lamb torn from the flock
A shepherd patient among the larkspur...
One Tuesday they took her away
She did not return for a week
I had squandered my time all wrong
The sun shone so brightly on that Wednesday!
I took her violets and kissed her cheek
She asked what had taken me so long!
Copyright Beth Sutton 2019