The First
This first year of firsts…My God, how it hurtsTo be without you.Like getting hit by a bus, I surrender To the
Why Poems?
Poetry became a refuge for my grief, a way to navigate the turbulent sea of emotions that engulfed me after my husband died. The words flowed as though they were carrying away fragments of my sorrow, giving shape to my pain and allowing me to process the depth of my loss. Each verse was like a whispered conversation with him, a way to keep his memory alive and honor the love we shared. Through poetry, I found solace, strength, and a means to express the inexpressible.
These expressions formed yet another component of my wellness journey; a way to heal my heart, to dislodge the lump in my throat, to literally “throw up” the painful content in my gut that took up residence there.
I’ve shared a few of my favorite poems here, and hope that you might find them comforting or, at the very least, help you to process your own pain through reading them.
Waiting
Lao tzu said,Do you have the patience to wait til your mud settles And the water is clear? So I sit
Us
He’d tease me aboutAll the shoes that I wore.How they littered the closet,Yet I still wanted more. I’d chide him
Widowed Sister
A widow in the neighborhoodWho lives up the street,Saw me on my morning walk.Soon our eyes did meet. She crossed
Another Empty Morning
A flock of geeseFlies overheadTo somewhere else.I’m still in bed And look aheadTo another dayOf empty hours.No flowers In my
Not Buying Groceries
I park in a spotAt the grocery store lot.Turn off the engine, open the door…But come to full stop, cannot