Just Like Autumn Leaves

A Poem

Photo by Jeremy Thomas on Unsplash

happiness fell in gasps,
and i traversed a forest —
dark woods engulfing me —
till all i could see was his face.

they say the elf king knows nothing
beyond the hope at the end of stars —
and maybe you would be right
that such a specter cannot be trusted.

but i danced with him beneath
a canopy of branches,
a wide-open span of absolution,
till all i could see was an unbidden mask.

and when he took off the mask,
i didn’t know what i would find —
perhaps a skull’s face, lines all gaunt,
or perhaps another fear in the depths of desire.

but then sorrow fell away
like autumn leaves, like autumn leaves,
because all i could see was his hope
all alight in the cradle of mine.

and maybe the end of the world
knocked at my door once, twice, thrice —
and maybe the end of the world
kissed my bruised knuckles against the storm.