The Chair Beside the Window

Your chair beside the window
Faces west across the glass
A cooling cup beside you
Your book lies open, page half-past
Reading glasses on the margin
Dust rims every family frame
Your hand found mine, then found my face
Before I said your name

I brought a thousand small excuses
Folded underneath my coat
But your eyes made room for silence
And the words stayed in my throat

You kept the chair beside the window
You kept my place beside your heart
You kept the chair beside the window
Where love had saved me from the start

You heard each voice message I sent you
You never told me how it sounded
When the house had only one voice
And every answer came back hollow
I saw dates around the calendar
Visits I had pushed away
Blue circles faded into paper
For each promise I delayed

I said, I should have come much sooner
You said, sit down, you made it here
No courtroom in the kitchen
No sentence waiting in the air

You kept the chair beside the window
You kept my place, and I came home
You kept the chair beside the window
Now I will not leave you alone
You kept the chair beside the window
I thank you for the room you made
You kept the chair beside the window
And I am here for all today

You kept the chair beside the window

You kept my place beside the window