Let Me Memorise Your Face Poem by Rani Turton

One more thing before you go.
The door is open. You will walk out and not return.
The shadows of the night will take you away.
The car door will slam. And then there will be
That unspeakable silence once more.
So, let me ask for the first and last thing
I ever asked you for: let me memorise your face.
Maudlin? No, not I.
Let me memorise your face for the empty years to come.
I do not even know what I will become.
Let me, in total recall, imprint
The colour of your hair, your eyes, your skin
But do not let the slightest emotion begin.

I will not touch the skin of your hands.
That means nothing. It will not sustain me
On life's long journey. On lonely days and nights
I will remember these moments:
These moments, fraught with anguish and this place:
The instant when I memorised your face.




Copyright: Rani Turton