A Hundred and Four Miles

A few thousand bricks and barbed wire
Armed soldiers? Hundred, maybe higher
Precisely a hundred and four miles of separation
The twelve foot high wall of desperation

A pure love; ruined overnight
Left with emptiness and thoughts of daring flight
A wall went up suddenly to divide
Loneliness; the young lovers may never again unite

One in the West, one in the East
Could some smuggled letters defeat this political beast?
Hope dwindling, could love thrive?
Or will it be fleeting, milestones in a drive

The wall itself that tore them apart
Lavishly covered in the people’s works of art
Attacked with frustration many a time
But the bricks held firm, staying in line

Two years, two letters, he fled to the East
Caught before the crossing; beaten, bruised, left on the street
Just for her he risked his life
The pain in his heart sharper than the stab of a knife

Years later torn down were the bricks and wire
Armed soldiers? No longer required
Gone were the hundred and four miles of separation
His hair greying, he was joyous with expectation

No letters had passed but the memories were enough
The barrier dead, he ran longing for her love
There in all those crowds, was that unmistakable face
In the arms of her new love she had long ago embraced.