THE ROSE


She thinks back on what might have been
On the places unseen
People never met
Where would life take her next

She holds the rose close to her nose
Smelling spring and youth
A man passing by had given
It to her with a smile

Now she wonders
What was on his mind
Life has taken her
From person to person

A never ending roller coaster
She stands on the bridge
Looking at the river
Flowing down to the ocean

She smells the rose again
It isn�t so bad to be alone
A couple walk by holding hands
A pang of what might be

She steps off the bridge
Onto the leaf filled road
The sun is setting
The sky light blue changing to darker

Her home isn�t far
There is love there
The leaves cover her shoes
He has been gone many years

It wasn�t the best of love
Not the love of dreams
He left all at once
Her house is on the corner

She has thought of moving many times
Something keeps her here
Another man hands her a rose
She looks into his eyes

He looks as she does in the mirror
He speaks gently
She knows the courage he is using
Still she is silent

She looks at her two roses
And begins to smile
He smiles back at her
She says Yes I will walk with you

They walk to the bridge
She takes his hand
As they walk they see a woman
Standing all alone smelling a single rose


Michael V Hechtman