Anklet Ring

Anklet Ring

************

I sit beside you and hold your hand,

The same gentle hand that once held mine.

Your fingers are thin, your voice is weak,

Yet my heart still swells with the same deep love.

***

To me, you are still the brave sister

Who walked beside me when I was small.

I look at your face, worn by the years,

And through my tears, I see another face-

The vibrant young woman I remember from childhood,

****

With bright eyes, a gentle smile,

And bangles singing softly on her hands.

Do you remember, sister,

How desperately I used to follow you everywhere?

***

How I cried your name when I was afraid,

And how you would come running to comfort me?

You were my safe harbor then,

And even now, my restless heart feels peace beside you.

***

I still remember the sweet comfort of your footsteps-

The cherished sound of your anklets

Coming down the path toward our home.

To others, they may have been just a sound;

To my young heart, they were the safest music I ever knew.

***

Years have passed without asking our permission.

Your rich black hair has turned to silver,

Your quick steps have become slow and fragile,

And the lively voice that once filled our home

Has softened into a heartbreaking whisper.

But when I close my eyes,

My soul refuses to see the frail woman before me.

****

I see my beloved sister as she always was-

Young, smiling, walking toward me,

Carrying all the warmth and love of our childhood home.

Now I sit in aching silence beside you,

Listening to the quiet sorrow of your fading breath.

***

There is a heavy fullness in my chest-

So many things I wish I had told you,

So many overdue “thank yous” left unsaid,

And one simple truth I pray you can hear:

I was so endlessly lucky to be your little brother.

If this is truly our last evening together,

My heart refuses to say a final goodbye.

I will carry your laughter like a treasure in my heart,

Your tender kindness in my deepest memories,

And the warm touch of your hand forever in mine.

***

And whenever I hear a distant anklet ring

On some lonely, quiet evening,

I know my heart will leap and turn around-

And for a brief, beautiful moment,

I will be that helpless little boy again,

Aching and waiting for his sister to come home.