Memorial

Just simple words written in the quiet, small hours of morning

There is no highly polished brass plaque
or words etched into cold, coloured granite,
as this she said would place a burden upon us,
make us feel duty bound to stay, visit,
if for no other reason than to polish, tidy, place fresh flowers,
and this in her mind both a waste of time and money.
Would be better, she said, her memorial be our beating hearts and memories,
as these would not be a bind, would not tie us to one place,
would have her life, love, memory, "portable," ever present
waiting patiently in the shadows of our sub conscious
to be visited, called forward into the light,
even if the light, as is mainly the case, be the darkness,
the quiet small hours of early mornings
when as all sleep the minds of those silently mourning and missing remember...

Author's Note

Hopefully makes sense to some :)

Reviews

[Beren]

Damn, this poem has a real funeral air.I haven't been the same person since someone told me that memories/past are only in my head and I can go there if I want but I can never touch them. This poem made me drop my shoulders while reading it, it's so powerful

[Gee]

Thanks Beren.
Mum died in April 2019 which strangely I'm grateful for as she didn't have to suffer Covid in her care home.
I wrote numerous dark, grief filled poems over the course of the year following mums passing, these I still visit and re read. There have been times when I cannot recall mums face and others when she comes to me in dreams, grief is a strange, strange emotion.

[Gee]

Strangely this grief was nowhere near as heartbreaking as when a very close friend died aged 57

[Beren]

I am so sorry for your loss. I can understand why you are grateful, believe me it is very valid. You still keep her alive in your poems and that is very valuable.
Thank you for sharing this with us.

[Gee]

I have just reposted the first poem I wrote after the 57 year old friend passed. You might enjoy, if that the right word to use.

[Beren]

Thank you so much. I lost my father on my birthday, and I can't talk about this a lot. I love that others have the courage to write about grief. Believe me, you are not just writing for yourself.

[Gee]

Thank you, that means a lot

[Betty Hermelee]

Perhaps it’s better to have something simple on your grave……I, for one, have only been once to see my parents simple graves with just an etching in the stone……it’s the memory that is foremost, and that will last indefinitely.
Best, B.

[Gee]

Thanks for dropping in Betty

[Betty Hermelee]

You're very welcome Gee!
Best, B.

[Patricia]

I love this, memories in beating hearts, yes this is who we are so make some good ones! Well done Gee!

[Gee]

Thank Patricia.
Hope you are over the worst and feeling better.
Take care :))

[Patricia]

thank you Gee, yes, I am finally starting to feel a bit better yay! Hugs!

[Lisasview]

Totally makes sense Gordon,
My mother felt the same way...and, so do I ..The burden of having someone come to your grave to clean and replace flowers is ...well, a burden.. Better to stay in loved ones heart..and memories..
After awhile even this stops and when other generation comes along those that are buried are long forgotten...
Forgot where we were once..perhaps it was Portugal ...where they bury family members one on top of the other..this was to save space, keep them together, etc.. There was a single grave marker with each person who died added to it..Then, there were no more names..So interesting. I always visit graveyards in the countries we visit...
Anyway, I really loved this story...
Lisa

[Fabian G. Franklin]

Wow. This is extraordinarily beautiful in its representation. It's a sentiment I completely adhere to as well. Love is the lasting memorial I'd like to leave behind in the minds and hearts of my children. And they, in turn, become my memorial to this world. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this!

[Gee]

Thank you, hopefully I will live long in my daughters heart once I've popped my clogs :)

[Fabian G. Franklin]

Love it! :)

[augustus]

On the occasion of attending a cremation before the restrictions imposed by the lockdown I walked slowly looking at the various and many brass plates with heartfelt messages inscribed on them. What a shame they only get looked at by strangers like me who are only there for another cremation. How sad!

[Gee]

Tis indeed sad Augustus. Thank you

[Chris Shaw]

Dear Gee, I looked for something new from you, couldn't find any recent writing, so settled on reading this lovely piece again. Just hoping you are having a lovely Easter and you and yours are all keeping safe and well.

Chris

[Gee]

Sorry , didn't see this Christine. Thank you.
Hope you are keeping well :)

[Einstein Noodle]

i think it makes a lot of sense Gee .. and well said! we don't forget the fallen we have lost along the way .. funny but i think the pain and loss is the priviledge of loving them .. we are shaped by it .. i have never been much for visiting the markers of buried loved ones ... tho I do from time to time .. to make sure they are kept well .. and to remember they once were physically here in my life ... i have my own all ready to go and will be among my family in a small prairie farm Cemetery where my Great Grandfather homesteaded. I gain much comfort from that in the here and now. ;) ...but it is in those "portable" places of the mind that my loved ones now passed most gently reside .. seem to come and go as they please bringing laughter or tears at the strangest of times as well as times i expect them .... :))) peace ... be well .. keep staying safe!
E.
ps. beautiful avatar pic sir!

[Gee]

Belated thanks E :)
Lost the eldest dog this week, devastated, old age and illness. After 15 and a half years with him there is a big hole and the younger spaniel is missing the old boy too :(

[Einstein Noodle]

i'm so sorry! i am a dog person as well and we lost our beloved Bella Mia 2 yrs ago this coming Oct. .. younger Beauregard has missed her as well .. looks for her and Norma from time to time .. he seems so lost ... breaks me heart all over again .. but we loved them deeply eh!? a good and fine thing.

[Gee]

Thanks E.....

[Audie G. Couch]

I understood this poem completely, and enjoyed reading it.
It provides a different outlook on memorials, and another way to hold onto someone after they die.
Thanks for sharing. =-)

[Gee]

Thank you..