Silence invades
Stifling all thought.
A man stands at the edge
of a chasm, confused,
Alone, lost
He knows this place.
His body language
Makes it obvious.
He is searching,
Something is missing.
He sees it, finally.
The burned wreckage,
Of what was a bridge.
Collapsed down
To that far away floor.
Vague memories,
Of explosives
Made of words and actions,
Come back to him;
He knows where he is.
A whispered word,
Half remembered,
Unconsciously leaves his mouth;
Floats across,
Echoing.
The word grows louder,
As it rebounds,
Bringing torturing clarity
To those oft forgotten
Memories.
His face twists,
Into an ugly,
Grimace, a snarl.
His teeth gnash,
His muscles grow taught.
Tense, he says
The word again.
Louder and louder
It grows, He stands
As if a rock.
He hears the word,
For the first time
Since it left his mouth.
That terrible word.
His tears flow freely.
He stares long and hard
At the depths of that chasm.
His eyes trace the other side,
Looking for some way across.
It is so far away.
That word escapes
His mouth again,
Without thinking;
Her name echoes
Across the canyon.
His brow furrows,
His jaw clenches.
He kicks a rock;
Watches as it falls,
Into the depths.
His eyes search,
Longing for a way.
It is too far.
He paces, faster;
Faster.
Muttering her name,
As the madness strikes,
He flies into a frenzy.
His voice rises
In a feverish crescendo.
Without Warning
He stops, exhausted;
Cries out her name.
The ground rushes up
To meet him.
Unconscious,
He lays on the edge.
His unseeing eyes
Staring at the unend-
Ing sky.
Days, weeks, months,
Pass as he lies.
He forgets, standing.
He stares across the chasm,
Searching…