At his funeral, her friends
shook their heads and whispered

How could she mourn such a man
who neither deserved nor returned her love?

She once loved him unconditionally
despite the pain of betrayal and worse.

In the end, she couldn’t save him
from his misery or himself.

On his deathbed, the broken old man called
for her, wept and pled for forgiveness.

The day after his muted burial
a white chrysanthemum lay on his grave.