Ashes Without Ruin

You came like rain on salted skin,
Then left before the tide could stay.
I called your name above the surf;
Warm waves pulled half my breath away.

Your mouth held vows too frail to keep,
Yet still they stirred my guarded chest.
Desire wakes the buried deep;
Attachment robs the soul of rest.

Some hearts arrive like coastal storms,
They split the silence like a sword.
They shake the palms with reckless force,
Then leave before roots touch the shore.

I chased your ghost through humid streets,
Past cafés breathing ocean air.
Each memory cut in sharp repeats,
I reached for smoke that was not there.

Now I release what would not grow,
What fate designed for passing flame?
Brief fires still leave embers warm,
Not every spark was meant to remain.

The ocean moves because it must,
No shore can ask the tide to bend.
Desire asks for courage over want,
Some souls ignite, then simply end.