Her eyes are glimmering chunks of caramel,
Set in a swirling sea of milky brown
Each amber segment brings more memories, fossils preserved from long ago
I see bright blue skies and melting chocolates
Shared beneath one of the big trees in Overton Park
I see rocky running trails heaving small sighs of dust,
as first one of her feet hits the ground and then the other
While she speeds ahead of me
I hear “Come on! Just a half mile left”
I feel my legs go numb from the exertion of the previous nine miles
And the chilly spring air,
But still I press on, firmly resolved not to give up until she does.
I feel her hands gripping my shoulders
When I carry her in my arms at her graduation party.
I remember her every time I run, how the soothing smell of her deodorant
would waft back to me on the breeze,
the thousand jokes and joys and laughter and little flirtations
That we shared
and I count down the days until she gets home from college.
And I wonder at what might have been and what could still be.
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