This poem is presented in its rough draft form for the PAD 2022 challenge and will be revised.
PAD Prompt: The Last BLANK
Poetic Form: 7 Syllable Lines
“The Last Goodbye”
The sun dances with the edge
of the world. They pause at a
rusted gate, wondering if
there is enough time left to
appreciate the garden
beyond. He pushes the gate
open, feeling as time gives
away in a screech. A stone
path weaves through flora, wildly
and beautiful. Rose bushes
six feet tall. Yellow bursts from
giant sunflowers. A fox
darts across their path. Its red
swallowed by the darkening
green shrubbery. A granite
fountain, empty and stained by
passing days, is dressed in thick
ivy. Blue wild indigo
stand guard with daylilies like
a wedding party waiting
for the ceremony to
begin. They walk hand in
hand, feeling the colorful
chaos eclipse them in sight
and fragrances - for now they
are happy. Shadows start to
fill the spaces between the
leaves. He spots a small patch of
Forget-Me-Not. Letting go
of her, he kneels to pick a
bouquet. He inhales the scent,
a hint of rain reflects the
goodbye he is forming for
her heart. He turns as he stands
placing the small blue flowers
in her hand. Kisses her cheek,
like a breeze. “Forget-Me-Nots,”
she says as she lifts them to
take in the moment. But the
hint of rain pierces her heart.
She looks up to find him gone,
like all the colors of the
garden around her, fading
into the darkness of night.
