Broken and Abandoned

rusted beams lean towards the river

smoke curls like ribbons of gray memory

hitting at the throat and eyes

windows

shattered like teeth

their edges sharp and trembling in the wind

the walls once held machines and memories

now silent

their metal bones rusted veins exposed

I walk along the bank and see the reflection of what

we told ourselves was permanent

ghosted promises trembling on the surface

slipping into the current

the voices of the city

the country

my family

all caught in the same slow surrender

a horn moans far away

happiness shattered by glass and wind

air tastes of iron and neglect

dust and smoke stick to my skin

a small crow hops among the rubble

its black feathers smeared with ash

it is patient

it waits

its eye a mirror of rememberance

it will not forget

and neither can I

the pulse of loss

the quiet of scream things burned

broken

abandoned

the smell of wet concrete scorched metal and rain

the echo of footsteps that will never return

and still somewhere a tiny flame lingers

a stubborn warmth under the ruins

a memory that refuses to vanish

the river moves carrying tiny pieces of everything we

were

everything we failed to hold