I saw you last night

I saw you last night as you passed me by,
Holding his hand, face lit by a radiant smile,
But you choose that corner where the shadows on the wall,
Were playing silhouettes of the dancing throng.

I could see you adored him, as he cherished you,
But was it fear I saw in your eyes? Fear of who?
I saw him whisper in your ears, gently coaxing,
with a vigorous shook of your head you sipped your drink.

A frown turned up in his brow and quickly vanished,
as he patted your cheek and tenderly smiled,
I wondered what was stopping you from dancing,
For your feet was to the music tapping.

You tried so hard to hold them still,
You wanted so badly to dance to the music,
And then you sat blinking into your cup,
Refusing to look up when asked what it was about.

The silent sigh as he looked away,
Could you be thinking of what others would say?
A familiar battle roaring in your brain,
As the music invited you, over and over again

I know you would hate yourself tonight,
With angry thoughts, and play in your mind,
Wishing you had got up and danced,
Instead of envying and holding back.

I wish I could tell you we don't really care,
If your hair is not perfect, or your figure,
I wish you would get up, the music was soon to end,
Then I saw it in your eyes - hard won determination.

You led your man to the centre to dance,
While friends cheered on for the laughing pair,
The battle in your brain was fought and won,
No more sitting down and missing out the fun

I saw you last night as you danced around,
Curbing my feet as the music shook the ground,
Ah! To have the courage to get up n dance,
Alas! tomorrow, I'll get another chance.
                                       - Vidya David Andrew