red was the color
she wore…
red
for energy, passion,
embracing the world

black was the color
she wore…
black
for the mysterious,
the unknowable

red was
the blood that flowed
unstanched
in its final
ebbing tide

black is
the empty void
that gapes where
sunlight once
danced and played

such a senseless
act is beyond
our understanding.

the image of her
life affirming
smile is not

with black
we mourn the life
taken

with red
we remember the life
lived