The Space You Once Filled

[Dark Muse]

The Space You Once Filled

I caught her reflection
in the mirror
for a moment like a
heartbeat

and as waking from
a dream
when I turned around
she was gone

but I remember the last
glance I had
of her

standing
elongated
in cat-like poise
against the door frame.

Her eyes sparked
perhaps under vino's
subtle influence

but her smile suggested
untold depth
which awakened
Apollonian passions.

Her dress
bloomed like a rose
bursting in bold red tones
red as the blood
which begins to seep
over the memories
of her face.

While the scent of her
still lives within my sheets
and permeates
into the wells of my soul.

Lost somewhere
out of reach
at these shadows
I still try to grasp.

If only for one last
touch of her honey sweet
skin

and the sounds of
screams ring
where once her voice
would sing.

A stolen forever
I can only kiss
fingertips of air
and fold myself into
the emptiness

where once
her breath stirred
quiet comforts
of broken promises
for eternity.

[PrinceMyshkin]

After the beautiful breathlessness of that glimpse of her in the first stanza, I thought that the rest of the poem would be or ought to have been as brief and as fleeting. Whether as catharsis or as poetry, I think it's a mistake to elaborate something so much, most particularly the absence of that something.

[Delta40]

I agree yet perhaps the space she once filled is rather large and therefore it is reflected well within the void.

[Dark Muse]

Thank you for your comments, the idea behind this poem was the portrayl of greif, which is not often short-lived and capturing the idea of one being haunted by these images of the past and what was once lost.

[Delta40]

You are right.

[The Walker]

wow dark muse, totall captivating, it has some softness in it that makes it enjoyable.
It is so well put in words. :)

[Dark Muse]

Thank you!

[MorpheusSandman]

I was thoroughly engrossed in every stanza. I love how the short lines seem to echo the "heartbeat" you mention early on. Some of those images and lines are incredibly powerful. Just to note some of my favorites:

Her dress
bloomed like a rose
bursting in bold red tones
red as the blood
which begins to seep
over the memories
of her face.

and

and the sounds of
screams ring
where once her voice
would sing.

I love the alliteration in the first (which connects all of these words together along with the metaphor) and the assonance/rhyme in the second which seem to resonate off each other like a scream or song. Excellent.

[Bar22do]

Thank you DarkMuse, I love your poem from the beginning to the end, your imagery is both soft and strong, and the metaphor of the rose incredibly good.
It is a wonderful poem, and - grieving is a process indeed, its darts reach far into one's future...

[Dark Muse]

Thank you!

[JuniperWoolf]

Thank you for your comments, the idea behind this poem was the portrayl of greif, which is not often short-lived and capturing the idea of one being haunted by these images of the past and what was once lost.

Your own past, yeah? You saw her in a mirror. I like that idea, that this is a portrait of your own former concept of self. I especially like the part where you mention the wine; alcohol warps our self-image.