Burden

Though she agrees
We are in love,
She fears I will
Be a burden
Getting a prosthetic
Leg going to rehab.
She says I am too
Domineering telling
Others of our love,
Without her
Prior consent,
I am too
In love to
Remain silent
But I will learn
To listen if she
Will only speak.
I planned to be
Self-reliant but
She fears I may
Need help and
She does not trust
I can go shopping
With her with a
Prosthetic leg,
I fear her dementia
May worsen and
Or old age will
Inevitably make me
Her nurse though I
Would gladly do it
As I have done before.
I tell her we need
To tell each other
Day by day what
We like or don’t
But she suspects
I am using her to
Nurse me while
I hoped that we
Would help each
Other in our last
Fifteen years
Of life spending
Those years
Eating meals
Together and
Keeping each other
Company day and
Night with some
One who cares
For us from
Their heart,
Someone
We trust.
Love is a
Leap into
The unknown,
Jump or die
Alone with
Only kids
Left with
The burden.