Shinrai



Her arrival in his world once again

bursts on his soul like

the morning scatter of the sun

dappling the forest floor,

calming his tempestuous heart,

flickering before his eyes

as they reflect her golden light.



He revels in her warmth–

hoping to bask in her glow

for more than the fleeting moments of memory–

but he is little more than

the wind in the trees,

feeling her without touching her,

sharing her space –

yet forever distant.



Time itself becomes his enemy,

a jealous lover

tearing her from his brief embrace

and masking its crime as

inevitable –

natural –

as unstoppable as the daily

betrayal of the sun

as it escapes the sky’s hold

and slips once more

into the dark.



Time’s reluctant familiar,

he wanders after her

soul’s absence.

But no forgiveness grants him an end to her

flights beyond the night.



Together and always separate

he trusts in the next dawning,

another cycle,

another chance,

to lose her

all over again.