The Fires of Dawn

She is gone, her body ashes in the sea

But not for me this brief candle of life

Blown out before it joyously could yield

Its full and perfumed offering of soul.

I know beyond my knowing she is here

And all my sorrow difficult to bear

For one who is not dead but silently

Stands a guardian presence at my side.

She is aware of all my weaknesses

And loans her strength that I might overcome

The loneliness and emptiness I feel

When in my dreams I see her features steal

Across the fleeting visions of the night.

I lie awake and think what might have been,

The loveliness of moments without speech

And love unchanging in a changing world.

I shall not let the sacred visions fade,

Eternity my inner being wills

For One is there who shoulders all our grief

And carries us to light the fires of dawn.