She

with the forlorn smile

I didn’t think you would stay with her

She died a million deaths in a day

Yet you never told her to just hold on

You knew her silent ways

About the unrest inside her mind

And the cracked road she’s traveled

To where she is today

You know she has traveled alone

And there were winding roads

And so many false homes

So you keep this porch light on for her

You keep it on for the days she’s lost

When the world is a little too gray

For the times she is lost outside

And wants to go away

She is her own island

And no one is allowed on it

It’s hard even for her to survive

But you are her rescue boat

And all this time

The porch light has been on

Signaling to her like a lighthouse in the storm

If you’ve aged she won’t complain

You’ve always been older than you look

She will sometimes wonder if she’s aged you

But laugh lines cause wrinkles

She wonders and she wanders

Always a prisoner of her body and mind

But she comes back for you every time

Even when the porch light dims and flickers

Because there is no place brighter

Than next to

You