Bitter sweet, bitter Suite,

you break my heart again.

I gently hold you in my arms

try not to cause you pain.

 

This sweetness to be with you,

to see your face once more;

to cherish just one last sweet kiss,

before death slams the door.

 

Oh to be with you right now

to talk and laugh again!

For focus, love and clarity –

the calm before the pain.

 

You hold me tight and whisper,

but death clasps tighter still;

a grip around our fragile hearts,

it’s a bitter poisoned pill.

 

You try to look, you try to see,

but your eyes are not the same.

Could you even see me

when I screamed out your name?

 

The feeling of bewilderment

as you take your last breath.

You leave in anger, not in peace,

I can’t walk with you in death

 

Death claimed your heart, and you claimed mine,

you’ve gone where I can’t follow.

You’ve left me sad and broken down;

my heart is dead and hollow.

 

Bitter sweet, bitter Suite

the feeling’s still the same.

Life and death go hand in hand,

but the memories remain.

 

© Bitter Sweet, Bitter Suite 2012

By Alexandra Carr-Malcolm

Elizabeth Siddal was the model for Sir John Everett Millais’s Ophelia. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)