August 2023
Author's Note: My poem this month is a contemplation of what I have heard people say to explain why things happen that make them remember someone who was and no longer is. I don't try to make those connections, or imagine my lost one being invisibly there. I just smile when I remember them and expect that they remember me too, hopefully with some fondness.
everything is a sign
the rose petal that falls
at the exact moment you pass
the cardinal that sits a second
on the windowsill, then flies
the cloud that can be imagined
into the shape of her face
the stranger's dog that stares
then barks like you-know-who
the swirl of leaves that spirals
just as you think of his laugh
the car that won't start
until you speak her name aloud
the parting of storm clouds that
illuminates his grave. only his
the snapping of a twig behind you
when no one else is on the trail
the colors, the sounds, the scents
everywhere you go, all whisper
whatever you need them to whisper
to fill the million empty moments
everything is a sign because
whatever is gone requires it
because your aching heart demands
to know you are remembered
©2023 j.lewis
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