~ Faded Portrait ~
A cold and snowy day, in December of '44
A telegram arrived, a souvenir of war.
Cold lips began to quiver
and hands began to shake,
As she tore into the letter,
her heart began to break.
"We regret to inform you…"
She read thru misty tears,
It seems like yesterday
though it's been so many years.
His faded portrait smiles,
forever young and bold,
While years went marching by
'til she was bent and old.
She lived her life alone
but lived with no regret,
A life of quiet strength,
but she never could forget
The only love she ever knew,
that Death could not erase-
And in her heart love only grew
with memories she embraced.
A cold December day,
a mourning bell now tolls,
But do not weep or grieve
for this departed soul.
She faded into sleep
and dreamt a gentle dream,
Her love was waiting there
with eyes so welcoming.
They found her just that way,
a smile played on her lips,
And from her work-worn hands,
his faded portrait slipped…
Sharon Frye
©
2003 used with permission
Heroes of the Heart
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