An Encounter with a Small Pond on the Wet Sidewalk (A Personal Poem on the Process of Moving On)

I was walking alone at our school's outdoor court after the rain. There were some placid puddles on the ground. I spent the time reflecting on love.

To the one whom I used to love

But still love and because of love

I had to leave for the sake of love

 

Remember me and my love for you

Each time you see the morning sky

Part I: Solitude

I was walking on the soaked sidewalk one afternoon

I noticed: a pond, the tears of saddened clouds

Gathered on the uneven sidewalk pavement

Surely the rain had ceased, yet a soul’s displeased

Why did it cease? Too soon for me to even ponder?

The clouds had shrunk and returned to their white

Bright! The sun flared from a cloud but I despaired

For after the rain, men emerged from their burrows

And filled the wet streets before they could even dry

Ah, the blissful solitude of my heartbroken state

Seemed to have been robbed from me instantly

A new kind of solitude, one that is not so blissful,

Beset me, a fresh prey, and tormented my poor spirit

That solitude, which was despicable beyond words,

Cursed me to suffer and agonize in peaceful company

I lost my yearning to belong, to love, to be loved

I became a rock: so empty, so cold, and so unfeeling

I existed but I was not alive; I did not drift nor dream

Part II: Reminiscence

In that state, as the last bit of my life began to corrode  

I glanced at the quiet pond; it has shrunk a little 

Under heavy footsteps and under the sun’s warmth

But still a reflection, capturing a portion of the azure sky

I pondered over the pond, given the sole chance to do so

Nostalgia. Reminiscence. I could not discard nor forget!

Oh, I remembered my lover and her calming caress

We used to lie adjacently below the tired old oak

Beneath the eternal stretch of the watchful heavens

And so near we were and my arms wrapped around her

She felt my fears close through my trembling embrace

She did not shiver and she shared with me her strength

Weary lips spoke in whisper the secrets of our hearts

Secrets, in active spirits, remain in still dormancy

Revealed only once the soul is cleansed from burdens

The earthly yokes brought about by worldly agendas

And as our fair whispers moved and turned and twirled

Across the short length of air between my ear and hers

The seasons seemed to change without our notice

Time leapt from a second, a minute, and then an hour

But we did not care to score the day’s usual track

We concerned ourselves with love’s eternal measure

With its enchanting seconds, its peaceful minutes

Its delightful hours and its splendid days and promises 

Which an aged clock will count as a short lifetime

But a heart would count it as a single yet beautiful day

A day that never ceases even through Time’s creases

This was all that was ours to hold, nothing more or less

Part III: Realization

We loved without any ransom �" we were both free

But cruel Fate held us by one thing: we were mortals

Yes, mortals. Mere mortals and prone to mistake

All of us are inevitably prone to fatal imperfections

That truth was my greatest fear, my own weakness

To conceal my flaws and spare her from that capability

I had to depart and forget, and all that in sheer regret

And beyond that excruciating turbulence and agony

I remember nothing else but a profound encounter

An encounter with a small pond on the wet sidewalk

Author's Note

I wrote this about my reflection. I didn't have much time to edit it. So pardon any mistake.