Laying the Ghost to Rest

A Poem

Photo by Alex Blăjan on Unsplash

i stood with a heavy heart
at the tomb of my love
where i tried to set you free
to know something like peace
once and for all

but i also wondered
if perhaps this was grace —
the very notion
that i could be rid of you
at last, at last

i held you cradled
in the cage of my chest
for what felt like eons —
but there was no point
since you loved another

if my love were a rose,
then the petals would be
yellow interwined with pink
as if i couldn’t decide
where we stood

but now i’ve scattered
every wayward petal —
and everything bleeds
into white, pure white,
because i’ve let go

i’m still looking
for my rare red rose —
if it exists at all for me —
but now i realize
you weren’t the one