Adeline's heart broke

She was just a baby when he swept her away,
His experience was measured in years and hers was in days;
Her name was Adeline, a fine example of the female, at age sixteen,
A finer example was surely not to be seen.

Joseph stood with Adeline at the altar, fifteen years between them,
To Adeline, Joseph was more than a husband: he was a teacher, mentor, a sparkling gem!
With child the very first year,
The baby provided comfort when Joseph's work never kept him near.

Raising young William to school-age practically alone,
His father barely noticed how much he had grown;
But Adeline was aware of the loss in her son's face,
And the mutual feeling reflected in her heart with a quickening pace.

Standing in front of a mirror regularly, studying her naked form,
At the age of twenty-five, she wondered why her appearance had lost its charm;
Joseph wasn't there, even when he was,
And Adeline was beginning to suspect the cause.

Finding women's apparel in his suitcase, Adeline demanded the truth, then implored,
He denied it at first, but then hung his head, and went out the door;
At the age of thirty-five, she felt the tide of her life descend,
And the surf would never come in again.

"I stand before you now, a man of eighteen years",
William said before the sullen crowd, "I'm relating my fears";
"Many people have said that they heard the shotgun blast that took my mother's life," William spoke,
"But I believe...it was the sound that was made...when Adeline's heart broke...."