I Could Not Make You Stay
written by: Sterling Pohlmann
@writeratwork1
I could make you laugh and smile
even though all the while your world was consumed by a devastating wild fire
But I could not make you stay.
I could have wooed the fears,
that had you so pierced,
I could relight you when you burned out your flame,
For a moment I could make you forget the pain,
from the wars in your brain,
I hoped with what I offered I could make you finally ignore it one day,
But I could not make you stay.
In the end of course it was late,
because your brain was mean and reinforcing its cage,
it must’ve been like being trampled by a dozen horses per day,
I could not carry a burden whose weight came from a lifetime that was lurid,
And I could not make you stay.
When a star collapses, not even light can escape,
I could not see through your endless night that was fate,
And I could not make you stay.
Until now, I could not know that no matter how many years we shared it would have never been enough,
In my mind your final words so cleverly erupt,
I’ll be eternally wrestling with and questioning if I could have made you stay.
- I Could Not Make You Stay - August 2, 2024
- Many Fine Books - February 3, 2023
- The City at Night - September 11, 2022
