A Spectre

Last night
As a lay helpless
I watched as my memories dissolved before my eyes.
I saw you
Outlined in white
Break apart
And scatter to the wind,
Your hand outstretched.
I watched my thoughts
My dreams
My future
Break away like melting ice
And drift into the endless sea
Of time.

I still dream of you
And think of you
In the quiet hours of the day
But I no longer know your face
Or your voice
Or the love
I once thought we shared.

You are a spectre,
Our life is now but a haunting
From which I fear
I will never escape.

When a tool
That is not built to last
Has completed its task
Do you discard it
Or do you place it neatly
On the shelf with the others;
For what?