Leave a Light On

The mortar bleeds
Cold, gray tears,
Then dries and cracks.
Cruel lonely years.
The morbid weight of emptiness -
Pressing, pushing; hopelessness.
Sand pours out
From skeletal gaps;
Each grain a herald
Of collapse.

That which remains
Is stone on stone
And scraping pain,
Like bone on bone.

An empty castle,
Swept aside -
Reclusive -
With hollow hearth
And no fire
To abide.

Littered recollections;
Litter lost -
Blown away -mere afterthought.
A dwelling dwelling.
Tumbling stray.

No toll to take, nor fare to pay.

Alone,

Alone;

Each falling stone
Reveals a dark
And empty throne.

Forgotten castle.
Left behind.
Splintered flotsam
In black brine,
Drifting on
The sea of time.

The breathless screams
Of empty hope
Echo songs
Behind the throngs
Of broken stones
And brittle walls.
Unanswered calls
Cried in vain,

Yet…

One flickering window
Still remains.