ELVIS DOESN?T PLAY HERE ANYMORE

as I stood on the step
where you breathed your last
natural breath I realised
that Elvis doesn't play here anymore

I wanted to weep
but I couldn't accept that you were gone.
they told me you would nourish the earth
as when a rose petal drops
a phrase, to a young girl, so powerful
but now I know death is death
no fragrant oils can remove the bitter stench
nor the memory of Elvis records strewn at your feet

if only I'd known death lay sleeping
only to be roused in a few short hours
so many words unspoken
consolations offered too late
you knew that Elvis lay dormant
did that ease the torture of death?

as your once vibrant body lay in abeyance
Elvis played for you, did you hear?
Don't Leave Me Now a tender plea
echoing softly in the background
you opened your eyes, smiled
For ol' times' sake,
then you were gone
no happy ending

now I weep
the sun no longer shines as bright
Time, the great healer,
has paradoxically eroded
your face from my memory.
I remember the good times
but even your memory turns saturnine
as the last petal drops from the rose
an ironic conclusion
Elvis does still play
but not for you