MY LONG GRIEF (A POEM)

The loss of one, the loss of a son,
The loss of a wife, the loss of a life,
The loss of a lover,  
Slow to recover,
Becomes a long grief.

The hurt of absence,
The pain of empty,
The sound of silence,
There is no relief. 

Don’t cliché me to death,
Don’t tell me ‘don’t cry,’
Don’t say get a grip,
When I cry out ‘Why?’
Mine is a long grief.

One day will pass and then another,
In some deficit way,
I will recover,
But I won’t be the same.
My long grief laid its claim.

I’ll smile again and help others grin,
Hiding the anguish I carry within.
I’ll live longer and I’ll live without,
But I’ll always miss the one life was about.
‘twill be a long grief.

© Ron Unruh, March 2020