And in the Space Between
ALEXANDRA-LEE MALKI
And in the space between
With the swaying greens,
Beneath the expansive light
I see through the night,
Of suns and moons ago.
With the bright loud
And the darkened quiet,
Of the Worlds between
Where the hearts sing,
For all that time
You lay by my side.
When the winds grew loud
And the sky thundered down.
As the travellers we once were,
With the things we’d seen
And the places we’d been,
Still by me, you held me
As the world shattered
And my home was lost,
I still felt safe within your arms
Throughout that space between,
Covered as you were in cottoned green
And I in my knitted black.
The world rightened
And I felt a warmth
I thought long gone.
Of a fireplace throughout winter,
Sitting on our woollen carpet
Snuggled deep in woolly blankets.
The howling of the wind
With the snow falling in,
The roof had collapsed
With the shattering of the glass
Spoiling the floor…
Still, I stayed in comfort
With her by my side.
As the days changed
And the season stayed the same,
Of the ever-lasting white haze
Throughout the light,
Of the glaciers passing throughout the night.
The fire lost its warmth
And the blankets decayed.
I looked to her in silence.
As the lights darkened
And our bodies grew cold,
We held each other
For all that warmth,
Little as it were,
And as we sat still,
Shivering in the cold
I felt her hand slacken.
And my world was no more.
So I travelled,
To lands far and near,
In search of …
To thaw my wintered heart.
As the moons passed
And I continued to walk,
Did I further lose myself
Stuck in that white haze,
Till the day the sun came out
Did I meet you.
At distance did we talk
But still I remained in thought,
Of the winter days
And the cold nights,
Of where I lost time
In that haze of moons.
Still, as you continued to talk
And walk,
So too did I.
And we went through flame and fire,
Through cold and ice,
Through sea and stars.
As we travelled
I continued to talk to
And walk with you,
And no more
Did I lose myself.
No more
Did I think of winter nights
And cold days.
No more
Did my heart wither.
No more
Did I look back.
But look I did.
With you by my side,
Seeing all the sights,
Tasting all the delights
Of the stars and moons
And suns and seasons,
Did we see it all.
I stood with you
Side by side,
I in my knitted black,
You in your cottoned green,
And we walked
And talked
Until our time.
Alexandra-Lee Malki is at heart a poet, even though she enjoys all forms of creative writing. She aspires to be a published author, whilst still focusing on her faith and family. Alexandra was short-listed in the 2018 Lane Cover Literary Awards, and her poem Bittersweet is in the 2018 Anthology.
