He kneeled before her in the dark night.

He imagined himself kneeling before her differently,

he imagined a vibrant smile across both their faces, a ring a box,

and the word "yes" emerging radiantly from her lips.

But instead, before him was her picture in a frame, planted on the grass were dozens of bouqets of:                                                    roses,ranunculus,carnations,daisies,lilies, peonies and beneath him was dirt moist from the shed tears.

She was an unfinished beauty-

  hair of golden sunrays,

  eyes of fields changing from summer to autumn,-

an angel that was sent back to Heaven too early.