It hits hard
the empty chair
staring at us
A ghost sits there
partially filling
memories reaching out to us
A brave person sits next
going on, keeping on
carrying two new burdens
One the missing touches, embraces
that link humans heart to heart
The other a thousand things
the missing one did, would be doing
As time goes by the empty chairs increase
numbers at funerals decrease
those ‘on the other side’ grow
those showing up moving slowly, carefully
with canes and walkers and wheelchairs, assisted
the empty chair
staring at us
A ghost sits there
partially filling
memories reaching out to us
A brave person sits next
going on, keeping on
carrying two new burdens
One the missing touches, embraces
that link humans heart to heart
The other a thousand things
the missing one did, would be doing
As time goes by the empty chairs increase
numbers at funerals decrease
those ‘on the other side’ grow
those showing up moving slowly, carefully
with canes and walkers and wheelchairs, assisted
Chapters close, books finish
we lay them aside, or
put them on a shelf, to gather dust
From dust we became
and so return
our fingers leaving marks
my hands become my grandpa’s
and I see them in my grandson’s…
Selah, Lin June 2014
I got a jolt just yesterday. A five star energetic lady, Nancy Strunk, recently lost her husband Duane. At a meeting of the Farm Bureau legislative committee where she and Duane were regulars, she was sitting there with an empty chair next to her. Just happened. But the empty chair was ‘talking to me’, grabbing me by the throat. They met and fell in love at the U of I, married, raised kids and worked side by side. Now there are grandchildren. And an empty chair.
we lay them aside, or
put them on a shelf, to gather dust
From dust we became
and so return
our fingers leaving marks
my hands become my grandpa’s
and I see them in my grandson’s…
Selah, Lin June 2014
I got a jolt just yesterday. A five star energetic lady, Nancy Strunk, recently lost her husband Duane. At a meeting of the Farm Bureau legislative committee where she and Duane were regulars, she was sitting there with an empty chair next to her. Just happened. But the empty chair was ‘talking to me’, grabbing me by the throat. They met and fell in love at the U of I, married, raised kids and worked side by side. Now there are grandchildren. And an empty chair.