Unprepared

There's a nostalgic mist trickling through town tonight
Kindling images that crystallize and clarify
In the cascading light of the watchful constellations

From the park where we'd play everyday after class
To the empty house where I saw you last
Not a mile's been spared by these blooming recollections

We were endlessly spinning tales of magic
On our adventures through the maples and pines
Mounting make-believe dragons like steeds in the enchanted evening air
I felt nothing but warmth the day the language
Of a carpenter's heart made you his glimmering bride
But sometimes hidden truths can catch you unprepared

As a soft breeze quietly whisked away
The gentle clink our glasses made
On the porch the night we celebrated your new home

A subtle anguish you couldn't conceal
Flashed through your face in a startling appeal
Though its secret reference was more than I was able to decode

Your husband was in the living room
With the rest of our high school friends
Winning them over with his story-telling flair
Each time the scene fills my mental view
It's my blindness I can't comprehend
And how hidden truths can catch you unprepared

With his charm having captivated everyone's hearts
No-one dreamed his magnetic embrace
Was folding you into a love so dark
That it wasn't much different from hate

And though you tried to kiss the nightmares away from his eyes
Their overflow nearly drowned your aching soul
Until he vanished with every dime you owned the night
Your daughter first howled at a world unknown

As the moon splits my heart like a lance
Ghostly dragons part childhood's mystical haze
To ignite the sky with the pain you left undeclared
Though I guess the wish to change the past
Is just another curse of all who age
Borne of regrets destined to forever remain unrepaired

I'm told these days you're based down south
Working two jobs not far from the sea
Frequently leaving your daughter in a close friend's care
I'll have to someday visit your town
Where we can watch the waves and share memories
Of when no hidden truths could catch us unprepared