Sickle Cell

I have lost three woman
to sickle cell
so far
I can't claim ownership
because the woman were
no more than my friends
my inspiration
my demonstration of courage
of love
of living life
and savoring each moment

I was not the family
that had to bury them
the child that would never know her mother
the fiancee
that could never make one her wife
the husband
that would never plant his seed
I was spared
from the excruciating pain
of watching the light of life
flicker and fade
witness the inevitable distruction
of an impossible fate

But I still lost
three remarkable woman
to sickle cell
watching them bounce in and out
of hospitals
bandaged joints and
paining limbs
But while they were here
each one of them was
magnifiscent
glowing beauty
unstoppable brilliance and
impenetrable strength

each one of them
defeated it
in their own way