Old Haunts — a poem of appreciation and apology

Old Haunts

I left you here because I know you'll be happy
in the orange forest glen beneath the tree canopy.
I left this note in your pocket to explain it all away—
the reasons I could never fill the shoes you carry.

I watched you trip the light fantastic amid dandelions.
I waited as you approached in your mystic hallowed time.
I played the fool just to hear your laughter bubble to the sky.
But time has changed me. I'm worn and weary.

You wrote me rambling love letters that lifted me,
poetry sprawling sexily and unselfconsciously on the page.
You could see us in our old haunts and finding new alcoves.
I could see old habits and they die just as quick as love.

I wonder if, in time, you might forgive me—
forget transgressions of an old yet ageless man.
When you wake and find this hand-scrawled letter,
search your heart for strength to understand.