"Degree Orbs"
Jim McKenzie
Just Not Today
The need was there.
I knew you could feel it
beyond the Veil.
The leaving had been abrupt,
unexpected, life shattering.
The one left behind...lost,
on the verge of following.
Unreachable in her grief,
even for you.
So, you reached,
I was there.
"It's not her time,"
you whispered.
"Tell her,"
you demanded
from your place
in Eternity's dimension.
Weeks, she had no will.
Sat when we sat her.
Stared at the food
placed before her,
put to bed like a child.
Softly, I kept repeating your message to her.
She would not hear.
On a moonlit night,
I invoked your name.
This, she heard.
Slowly she rejoined us.
Yet, we could always see
the empty spot
in her heart
that once
was you.
On a morning full of Spring sunshine
she spoke of a dream.
An Orb of brightest, whitest light
had awakened her.
It had hung in the air
above the jumbled covers
of loneliness.
With lively eyes,
she described the feelings
of calm,
of love
that held her in an embrace
that felt so familiar.
With all her heart,
she knew that it had been you.
She began to truly live again,
to put back on the mantle
of mother, grandmother, great-grandmother.
The tasks were many
for this matriarch of a growing family.
Days, years passed,
we all became older, wiser.
Sometimes her gaze would be far away,
a sad, gentle smile would tug at her lips.
I would know then that you were still with her.
And, I knew that you could not stay forever,
that one day I would have to send you home...
just not today.
This was for Magaly Guerrero's Witches in Fiction 2015.
The beautiful art work can be found here:http://www.jimmckenzie.net
Beautiful! Especially love the phrase "the jumbled covers of loneliness"
ReplyDeleteThank you, Debra! I appreciate you stopping by!
DeleteThis is wonderful. There's a sadness to hanging on, even when there's more sadness in letting go.
ReplyDeleteThere is, especially when you are on the outside!
DeleteMy dear, your works have given me a shiver of recognition and knowing. Thank you for writing such a heart felt story. xoxo Oma Linda
ReplyDeleteYour words mean a lot! Thank you, Oma Linda!
DeleteThis was so beautiful and I believed it was the only one with a "happy ending" . Your writing was powerful!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much! I, too, believe that was the only option for right then.
DeleteThe love that lives on and still protects that beyond the veil - potent stuff. And you captured it beautifully.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Rommy! I really appreciate your take on my words. You definitely got it.
DeleteSo poignant! Sad and hopeful! Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI didn't think about it being hopeful, but I guess it is. Thank you for pointing that out and for stopping by!
DeleteYou make us understand both grief and acceptance here, from the inside--it is hard to wrap your soul around loss like that, but to feel the lost one constantly there is also hard--this really made me stop and think about the whole way we look at death--very important, yet we always put it it off, diminish it with fairytales. I especially like the way the narrator is the one who is having the conversation with the spirit of the one gone, in order to be the conduit to somehow breach the defenses of deep grief. Thoughtful and very thought-inducing as well, Sharon.
ReplyDeleteThank you! When you have different views on death from most friends and family, I think it is harder to witness the grief of those left behind. Thank you for your thoughtful words!
DeleteI have used the word "beautiful" many times while reading through these posts, but it is just the perfect, soft word that comes from understanding. Just Beautiful XXX
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean, Gina! Magaly really brought out the good stuff in everybody with this year's theme. Thanks for the kind words and for stopping by!
DeleteI love this, Sharon. And I just roared because before reading Hedgewitch's comment, I had typed, "There is so much loss and knowing in your words. Grief stays with us, but it changes. The time comes when the hurt becomes bittersweet nostalgia... and at the right times, even the bittersweet is just sweet. ♥
ReplyDeleteIt means a lot that you like this. Sometimes I find things based in my truths are harder to write than fiction. <3
Delete"Just Not Today"... such a good way to make it through the ordeal...Thank you...
ReplyDeleteThank you, Judy! You are very kind!
DeleteIt's hard to believe that the things we love go away. I choose to believe they change. And this is such a kind and gentle way to express this. Perfectly put, Lady Sharon. As always.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for stopping by! As always, your words carry great weight for me.
DeleteSharon... this is so much walking between 2 worlds... just not today seems to be on that borderline, just magic xox
ReplyDeleteThank you, Shelle! Sometimes it is difficult to be in that place. I am so glad you liked it!
DeleteSorry I'm late making my rounds. Just Not Today reminds me of my Abuela's who have lost their other halves. Oh and the Abuelo's reach out their hands to retrieve their loves, but there is so much more for them to do and it is not time. Hope the weather is calmer than it was this weekend , mother nature is really letting her hair go wild.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate you stopping by, Holly! When you have been with someone a very long time it would be hard to let go. Yes, I am looking for that mild Autumn weather!
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