I cared for her up until her
Frailties were past my
Abilities, I assure myself
With fading confidence. I
Go back over the evidence
In the sleep of each night:
I should have discovered how
To prevent her diminishing,
Hold her here still and watch
Whatever happened as though
It merely may have, but instead
I wasn't enough -- snapping
Awake with pounding head, eyes
Swollen from all that lacking.
"You failed her" echoes
From a once-watched movie,
From the mouth of a
Criminal too smart for all
But the clever detective:
Someone less old, less
Inclined to get it wrong.
