Treasure

I hold this jeweled box
Now empty.

Once filled with brilliant gems, their multifaceted weight left creased, the velvet lining:

The emerald traded for hope and anticipation,
The ruby spent on lusty yearning and young love,
The diamond given over and over and over for patient guardianship,
The sapphire bargained for fitness and health.

Gleaming prizes gone,
Their purchase fades as well.

I run my finger around the bottom of the box hoping to find one last gem that might have been missed.
Perhaps a pearl caught in a velvety fold
An overlooked opal
A lost lapis

But no,
The box is empty.

I hold
I hold this
I hold this jeweled
I hold this jeweled box

And

Smile.