A Wake

Text:

© Grathy
How do you sum up a life?
How can you do someone justice
On a page,
Or if you’re
Up on a stage,

Braced against a podium,
That hopefully gives you strength
To recite a few just phrases,
Crafted with intelligence and care,

Yet there
Is so much that isn't said,
The real memory of that person laid bare,
With them no longer there
To defend the things that they did,
Or didn't do,

Like the times,
When your feelings were hurt,
Phrases scathing you
Like a hot knife on an open vein,

Or the moments when liberties were taken
In a dark room after midnight
No apology,
No remorse
Just the desire to flee
From the guilt
And muffled intercourse.

How do you pay homage
At a celebration of life?
So you bite your tongue,
Not saying those things left undone

Speaking the truth.
Is considered uncouth
And people would gasp
And grasp at those
Harsh phrases of yours.

Yet some may silently nod,
If you were one
Who was brave enough
To lay it out bare,
Like unleavened bread,
All those things that
Should have been said,

But you don't do that
You simply tip your hat
And keep it clean

Preserving the sheen
Of your loved one,
As they are laid to rest