FRIDAY AND THIS IS COFFEE ON WEDNESDAY

COFFEE ON WEDNESDAY

I had coffee on Wednesday

With a friend I know so well,

We took some time to sit and chat

To listen and to tell.

A lady came in to the coffee shop

On the arm of a younger man,

I saw him help her find her way,

To do the best she can.

He left her at a table

While he ordered their meal,

I sensed in her a panic –

A confusion very real.

I smiled at this lady

And was saddened by what I saw,

She struggled to know how to respond

And I am sure she knew before.

I looked into her blank and misty eyes

And my own eyes filled with tears,

Where has she gone – this lady

Who has travelled many years?

Where is the vibrant young wife

And the mother who showed such care?

Left in her place is a mind confused

And a face which mirrors despair.

I watched as she struggled to eat her lunch,

And thought back to the days

When those hands had guided the man

And kept him from troubled ways.

I felt certain the man was her son

As he held her arm with pride

When he held her coffee cup in his

I quietly turned aside.

When they left he helped her stand

And let her lean upon his arm,

They walked away so slowly

I knew he would keep her from harm.

I felt in my heart his sadness

For the Mother he loved and knew,

Now she does not even know

The love that he has is true.

He will never know how moved I was,

That I noticed his gentle care

But I know and it somehow changed me

That time I saw them there.

Perhaps there will be a glimmer

Of memory for her one day

I hope she knows he loves her

In a kind and gentle way.

© Linda J. Vaughan

http://about.me/lindajvaughan