“Ambition”

His ambition 

fascinated her—a reflection 

of her own drive  

for ultimate   

control in answering only to   

her own wishes. 

He drew her in 

with his passionate promises 

whispered in bed 

  

while her husband 

and children slept in innocence 

and ignorance. 

On moon filled nights 

she pledged her bright future to him, 

desperately 

clinging to him. 

Crumbling her disillusionment 

within her fist. 

Wagering all 

against a bid for happiness 

with a new life 

centered on him. 

She counted on his commitment 

to her—for them, 

to bind old wounds 

and invent a life together 

without heartache. 

Year drifts to year 

as her love grows, but his wavers 

and then retreats 

back to control 

of his own life and ambitions. 

He abandons 

her for himself. 

His selfishness now a mirror 

for her sorrow. 

Copyright 2011 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman