Wanderer, treading
gingerly upon this
broken path, as
dried leaves crunch
underfoot, remnants
of a glorious summer;
a time when the
world was brighter,
greener, fertile.
Now, petals in decay,
rotting fruit forgotten,
their beauty lying only in
a memory, distant and
fading like a parting
touch, goodbye kiss;
tender, yet bringing
the firm finality of a
future apart –
a lifetime lost.