Quiet Love

There were good memories. 
Enough to last a lifetime.
...the bad memories are fleeting shadows. 
They cannot mar the love in my heart.

I find the memories fade 
while love remains strong.
Memories need to be taken out 
and dusted until they shine again. 

Love's light never dims. 
It is always a beacon 
through shadows and pain
to a warm place in the heart.

Shadows flit around the edge
...there are always shadows.
Some slip in quickly and obscure
the vision. But they never last.
 
One hopes the missing other 
hates to inflict the pain. 
Love accepts selfishness, 
as it welcomes selflessness.

Knowing you've loved and been loved, 
that you did and can love,
is a gift, and loving forever
is a treasure to be envied by kings. 

Quiet retrospective glances
offer escape. ...what hurts most
is when they allow you to cut
the ties that bind. 

But even that most horrific
of pains cannot change love. 
Love is forever, constant, enduring...
a forever that fills emptiness. 

Love becomes a companion.
Content? No, but I can find
comfort with the memories. 
Because I know I was and am loved. 

I know that in moving on, I lessen
the pain of the one who loves me. 
Find the place in your heart where
you can safely hold your love.

Love will comfort and sustain
through a painful journey. 
Relish the knowledge that you loved. 
And be guided through any darkness.