Winter's Cold

The losses pile up

                Summer bleeds to fall

                And then the chill of winter

Auntie Jane,

                Having filled her bucket

                Joined her husband and daughter

Maggie, Tracy, Ruth and others,

                Gone without warning

                Always kiss them goodbye

Cathy’s sister and John

                Fought heroically

                Gracefully succumbed

Joy, embodying her name

                Taught mindfulness

                And unconditional love

Winter’s cold chills all.

Losing friends and family,

I long for spring.

We grieve, wail and mourn, shaking a fist at the universe. We clothe ourselves in the brittle shell of daily life, hope the next blow doesn't shatter us. 

Yet we keep on living, loving as though our life depends on it. 

And it does my beloveds. It is the strength of shared tears and laughter that seep through that brittle shell and lets hope grow. The sun WILL shine again. Perhaps not tomorrow or the next day, or even the day after that. But one day.

I promise on the strength of my love for you.