The Swan

The woman, wrapped in a thick coat, rubs her hands together to generate warmth. Her mouth curves downwards, between her heavy brows a deep line is chiselled.
The female swan glides past. The male swan had disappeared last summer.
The woman’s lover had left to fight a war and promised to return. She watches the female swan swim alone. She calls from the bridge,
‘Where is your mate? Is he alive?’
The swan looks up at her.
‘Does he care? Will he return this spring?’
The swan ducks her long neck.
A teardrop escapes the woman’s eye.
'Yes, he will.'