…inconsolable

Once again
we stood on the edge
of the painted world
where ochre fields
met a scarlet sky
where memories whispered
in the bare branches
and the seasons
tested us both

even the leaves
in the trees
and the myriads
of blossoms
struggled
in the shifting terrain
flaunting
their crimson colours
daring the world
to watch them burn

but fire
is a transient state
extinguished
by the rain
leaves and petals
trembling
a prelude
to the turning season
ultimately falling
into the cold mists
destination, obliteration

our final moments
dancing in the dusk
now swimming
in the indigo tides
our colours
slowly shifting
running
in shades of blue
blue
the colour of silence

our twilight hearts
that once loved too hard
and lost
but still
have not forgotten
our colours running
to mark the path
that in that other life
we once painted
with fire

the light
is now dissolving
at the edges
a lament for a love
that slowly faded
into the shadows
unable to hold its hue
and our sorrow
inconsolable
is now running blue
© Ann Bagnall