echo

they met
every saturday
at the edge of the town
in the meadows
for two years
without fail

then came the occasion
when
she had to leave town
with her mother

she had
let him know
a week
in advance
and pleaded him
not to visit the woods
in any  hope against hope

she left town

he left home
headed
for the meadows
and the echo
of her name
reverberated
the whole afternoon

for him
reality
was beyond belief

the past two years
was the time
he
lived
and the only memory
of life

each occasion
they'd lay on the ground
gazing at the sky
sharing the week that was

neither took a step further
for each
held what they had
between them
the most precious blessing

for them
company
was
everything
and
on that day
he had his everything
missing