grief

He stands there waiting
A tentative smile on his face
I stand at the door
I smile with tears on my face
Our joyful wedding day.

Today he stands at the window
A tentative smile on his face
I stand in the kitchen
I smile with tears sliding down my cheeks
He is not sure who I am.

Death comes in uncountable forms
Sometimes death is quick
Sometimes it comes slowly with illness
Sometimes it sneaks in with tiny steps
    taking only one part of life at a time.

Death sometime comes with great pain
    for the one dying and the living
Sometimes those who are dying
    do not know it is happening
Sometimes only those watching
    feel the pain.

Death will come to all of us
How we die, how we face death is up to us.
But, when you do not know you are dying
    how do you face the inevitable?
How do those who watch face the inevitable?

He waits for me to speak
So, I call him to have his lunch
We converse, his speech is random until
    he remembers, oh he remembers,
    that long ago wedding day.
We both smile and laugh.

Death in any form is hard on those left behind.
But the hardest type of death is watching
    the one you love die, one step at a time.

Ruth Jewell, ©January 25, 2024