The Way They Were

blissful didn’t quite describe the way

they lingered on each other’s gazes,

as if secrets passed silently between

the moods of their eyes, deep like lakes

and just as placid and serene.

onlookers didn’t quite believe the way

two people, a couple, could not argue,

as if being civil was a stain against

a relationship that was supposed to be

fraught with passion, good or bad.

even their children didn’t quite know

why their parents were so in love,

as if they were an anomaly,

too picture perfect, and hardly

able to be complained about.

they themselves didn’t quite see

how their bond could be scrutinized,

as if it were somehow wrong to be

stable and loving and kind in their love,

a model instead of a pending disaster.

the world didn’t quite understand

a marriage that worked, flourished,

as if it were just too twee or unbelievable,

that something good could last

and not rot like everything else.