Nicholas Browning

Cherry-Blossom Suicide

The worn linen of a raiment hangs

From a chord stretched underneath

A midsummer blooming of blue;

Of a sky so miserably drawn.

 

Along a wagon\'s way I walk

In my clothes darned with care,

Local wives gossip away their chores

But as I pass, they quietly stare.

 

Their children dance among the petals

Veiled over an emerald lea,

To them a strolling stranger am I;

The ever-elusive anomaly.

 

An hour\'s length led through a day

And with all its tasks attended to,

Citizens run over a bridge

To the other side of the village.

 

As I bow my head to give my regards

They wish to spew and waste their breath,

Though their words burn like coal

I laugh away the consequence.

 

While I know my stride is queer

And my sword a rusted metal,

Our sentiments both are indeed sincere

So we must see our debts settled.

 

Throughout the entirety of my life

I\'ve followed a trail of pink and white,

Many people I knew had disagreed

But it\'s simply where I wished to be.

 

I rest my head on this softened earth

To be embellished by her shards,

Once again adorning a wretch

Not too close, but never far.

 

In poverty I found riches,

And in hesitation, I found faith.

They warned of a tree that bore no fruit,

But I sought it anyway.