Kate McNamara & Robert Verdon, #5, Cemetery Visit

The still grass
on which a bird alights;
another year gone,
a stinking flower
in a metal vase,
as visits diminish.


The large wagtail on the grave
she will never escape, while
behind venetians, two grown children
dream of the small cry,
that will not be heard again;
their future forged
within manacles of memory.

In a slant of light the wagtail chirps

beyond timely grief, and a

teddy-bear
rotting by a headstone.