I am Certain of It

I saw Adriaen last night. It was no trick of the eye - he was at the place where I had scattered his ashes. It was barely a moment, then he was gone from sight. Though I know it would have made mother and father upset, I took a torch and went to see for myself – yet there was nothing, only a thick carpet of flowers, even thicker than before, so thick it was impossible to see if any tracks lay in the dirt. I remained there for longer than I realized, for when I came to my senses, dawn was rising, and there I was in my nightclothes. Adriaen, I will watch for you, and next time, I shall be swifter – if you are to be found, it is I who will catch you if you wander outside the village. I took a flower and placed it in the sill, a reminder to you that I still think of you. Unlike the first flower, this flower was pulled easily from the soil at my touch, as if recognizing me. Kathrijn