- Annette Austin
THE CLOCKS STOPPED MOVING

Sunshine streams through the window
Blue skies above,
Planes zoom through the scattered clouds
Birds fly to new destinations.
People chatter outside
Animated, their laughter hangs in the air,
Cars roar down the packed roads
Trying to weave through the traffic.
Inside, the clocks stopped moving
The day he left,
Bringing the tea to my lips
It’s cold, like my heart.
Cannot touch his clothes
As I still smell his scent,
It lingers in my soul
Don’t want to forget the smell.
His car is still outside
Mints still in the glove compartment,
Still visualise him popping them into his mouth
One after the other.
Long walks on the beach
Holding each other’s hands,
Not wanting to let go
As the waves crashed against the shore.
Sitting in the bright cafes
Talking to each other,
Sharing doughnuts and fancy cakes
Connecting, living, loving.
Now, it’s all faded away
Just like him,
Turn around in bed
So lost, so empty.
Visiting him where he lives now
It’s hard to bear,
I talk to him
There is no response.
An empty vessel
That’s what he is now,
Blank stares, no idea
Of what’s happened to him.
Every so often
A glimpse of what he used to be,
Then he asks, ‘Who am l?’
My heart tears apart once more.
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