I Watched You Crumble

I Watched You Crumble

a collapsed man in a ball of misery;
curled into oblivion
clutching the bedclothes in desperation.
The ball began to rock, quiver,
and then,
the keening began.

I heard the sound which scathed my ears,
smashed into my wincing mind,
mangled my face with concerned distress.
The sound constricted my throat into a searing lump
preventing me from swallowing;
it seeped from my eyes in empathy;
constricted and burned in my throat.
It shredded my heart.

I heard the sound,
an unbearable sound
slicing through the night of death.

I watched you crumble...

helplessly
and hopelessly inadequate,
I watched you cry.

© Catherine Knee