“Afraid to Forget”
Sitting by the grave
Just staring
Her mother unreachable
Trying not to forget her...
The little girl’s eyes
Empty and asking
Lonely beyond hope
Left so behind...
The heart aches
As her tears appear
How does one so small
Cope overwhelmed...
A mother’s love taken
And a life forever less
Never to trust again
Always waiting...
For the next terrible thing
To hurt and crush
A spirit made fragile
And frightened...
The look peers
Deep into the soul
Where a mother’s touch
Gently enfolds...
Wrapping children softly
In a heart’s embrace
Like nothing else can
As she tries to remember...
Every memory’s picture
Before they fade away
She can’t know yet
The sweet essence stays...
Forever and always within us
No matter how short the time shared.
Paul Colaluca (2/28/09)