Last Request

Just one last request—
It's all I ask—
A small act of kindness
I wish to remember you by,
When winter slips into spring
And we stand no more,
Huddled against the stiff wind
This time of year brings.

Please don't let them know
How it was we came
To love each other—
Why yours were the arms
I chose to wrap around me—
A shawl of forgiveness
I wore to face the cold.

And don't tell woeful tales
That trap the truth in lies,
Where body and soul collide
Under the sad guise of reason.
Step gently away from temptation—
The profane urge to shed
What little remains of our skin.