Immortal Heart

He serves overseas, 
His name on her tongue
And safety on her mind 
Wherever she goes. 
She thinks of him daily
And scribbles short poems
He will never be able to read-
War is a terrible thing.
She thinks of silly rhymes,
Her lonely heart spilling
On weathered pages to express
A love she has never before known.
She tries to force herself
To send them all, surely
A package he would be surprised
And glad to receive. 
She stores them in her attic
For the day he returns home;
She thinks maybe then
She can find the will to show 
Him what she has been doing
Besides counting the slow days
Until his scheduled return.
She knows the risks of war,
Her mind never easy before 
She goes to bed-she dreams
Of fear and worry and heartache.
She prays for him every day,
Wondering if he prays for her,
Sheltered in her large house
Surrounded by a white fence. 
Too many months then years too late,
She climbs up the creaking steps
Of the attic every morning when 
She wakes and shuffles through
Them all, each a special memory
Of the promises made long ago. 
She presses the pages against 
Her chest and breathes in the dust,
Thinking once more if it would be better
To burn them all, each a reminder
Of the man who will never read
The hundreds of poems she wrote 
In his honor and for his memory. 
Yet once again, as she does every 
Morning after waking up alone, 
She finds a pen and scribbles down
Another line to express her love-
A love she had never before known.