Bride I'll never be

A tangle of love and loss.

A bride I'll never be.
No bashful veil or delicate lace.
No flower strewn walk to morning coffee
and love notes on the fridge.

The unattended years have flown.
With no fights or inside jokes.
Not a single hallmark of love,
to make any day better or worse.

All the marks you made.
You drew the best parts of me
like a beautiful corpse.
One blind piece at a time.

I always thought
we'd count our gray hairs together.
Each strand binding us close,
a little more tomorrow than yesterday.

My tomorrows are both empty
and free of regrets.
Though a part of me is static and still
there's a small piece at it's best.

The part you loved.

(Original: 12-21-15)
(Second Draft: 05-02-16)