Day 164. Thursday 27th September

For Elkie Brooks

© 2018 Steve Cook

Tonight we saw Elkie Brooks on stage,

A songstress from my youth who does not age,

Whose voice still struck a chord within my soul,

And left me youthful yet and for an instant

Told me to forget that I've grown old.

This woman I have loved but never met

Kissed my fading ears as if with whispered

Salve that soothes the bruises of the years,

Mends the chafe of time's regret

And quells its roll of tears.

Some spirits simply glow with power

And she is surely one, a giant in slender frame

Who towers over landscapes so oft

By the dark undone, a lantern brings

To replace the absent sun.

With the light of music has she brightly shone,

A joyful beacon all across my days

And when finally we're gone it seems to me

We'll live again to see her take the stage

In some new hall as yet undreamed

On the far side of the Galaxy.