Amber Haze

"Forgotten? No, we never do forget:
We let the years go;
wash them clean with tears,
Leave them to bleach out in the open day,
Or lock them careful by, like dead friends' clothes,
Till we shall dare unfold them without pain,--
But we forget not, never can forget. "

- Dinah Maria Mulock

Amber Haze
by denny

He sat there staring at the bottle
Standing half empty on the top shelf
Where he had placed it 5 years before.
He had managed to ignore
It's temptations all these years, but now
He could feel the old craving coming back.

He hadn't seen them in nearly twice that long
Not since they moved away and
Left him there in the lonely house
Filled with all the clouded memories.
The Phone call had come as a surprise.

"Dad, we just happened to be in town
and thought you might like
to meet your grandchildren".

Grandchildren. That sounded somehow strange;
He barely remembered them growing up.
Their Mother had died when the last was born
And his world just dissolved into an amber haze.
They had been High School sweethearts
She had the deepest brown eyes, and
Chestnut hair. And she had been his life
For as long as he could remember.

Life had been hard, but she brought
A measure of joy into every day.
He got up early this morning, not knowing
Exactly what to think or what to do.
He fished around in the closet for
An old white shirt and put on clean socks,
Went into the kitchen to fix breakfast

When he opened the cupboard, his old friend
Was sitting there on the shelf .. waiting.
He sat down at the table and stared, remembering
What life had been with her, and after ...
And the half empty bottle on the top shelf.