The doors opened with a swish
and the dance began.
People exiting the train, others entering the train,
and many just shifting side to side
to allow for the ebb and flow.

I tucked your fingers under my arm as we alit,
and began threading my way across the platform
of the underground U-Bahn station.

Midway up the steps to street level,
I shivered as a blast of cold air swept by,
and I reached for you instinctively,
seeking your warmth to shield me from the wind.

You were gone.

Fearing the worst, I descended the stairs,
pushing against the tide of bodies
headed upward to the street.
I reached the platform and I saw you.
My suspicions were confirmed.

In the throng, you had slipped away,
and now you were heading hurriedly
in the opposite direction.
And in the arms of another.

My heart sank.
I wanted to go after you,
to claim you as my own,
but I knew that even if I managed to catch up to you,
I wouldn’t know what to say.

I don’t blame you.
I had taken you for granted,
thinking you would always be with me.
I was so, so wrong.

And so I let you go.
In sadness I turned away,
and retraced my steps out of the U-Bahn station
and onto the cold street.

If only, I thought…
if only I spoke better German
I would have called out to the other woman,
told her you were mine.
Told her how much I needed you,
How much you meant to me.

But I did none of that,
for fear of making a fool of myself.

I will miss you.
You were the warmest pair of gloves I’ve ever owned.

WordPress Writing 201, Assignment Eight: elegy.