Could I Have Saved You?

I've seen you smile,

I've heard you laugh,

I've seen you kiss your baby,

I've heard you say, "I love you."

But I've never seen your eyes twinkle,

never heard you tell a joke,

never seen a restful night from you,

never heard your snores in rhythm.

There was a joyous, loving person inside you,

just waiting to be freed.

I could hear it in your lullabies,

in the way you'd kiss your little girl.

I always wanted to ask you,

"Where did the twinkle in your eyes go?"

By the time I got myself to ask you,

I found you hanging from your fan.

Now your story is just another piece of history.

Every day I wonder whether asking you the question

would have let you give your little bride away today

or kept her from asking, "Where's daddy?" every day.

Author's Note

Written in 2016