Is it the giving of a life?
Or the one that’s left behind
picking up the pieces
of a torn and shattered soul?
Is it the one who gave their all,
or the ones who still remain
carrying their loved one
in a heart upon a chain?
The star that burned so bright
becomes elusive in the distance,
the song of the survivors
bittersweet in it’s refrain…
We cannot change reality
as past slips into memory
tucked away in box and frame.
How does one respond?
We only know they’re gone.
© Ginny Brannan 2021
I saw you last night
while streaming Netflix with our boy:
Star Trek “Enterprise”
fourth and final season,
final episode—
Commander Charles “Trip” Tucker, a series favorite,
self-taught, funny, wore his heart on his sleeve—
makes a conscious choice to protect those he loves.
Even as he is rushed to sick bay
and loaded into the hyperbaric chamber
he turns and gives a wink and a smile;
through his pain still trying to put others at ease.
And in that millisecond I saw you,
that same wink, that same smile
kidding with the nurses as you tried to ease our pain.
I guess even in fictional space, folks
do what they do for the people they love,
just as we did for each other
—just as you did for us
© GB 2021
Not poetry, just thoughts to paper...because sometimes things must be written.
The grass is up to my knees
along with the dandelions and weeds–
well, that may be ever-so-slightly exaggerated...
Since April, there has been an abundance of clouds.
The rains came heavily at first, and the grayness
hung like a weight not wanting to let go.
But I’ve been noticing the colors more of late,
the flowers in my yard growing with a zeal and abundance
I have never observed before.
And interspersed with rain have come golden sunsets,
the light in the western sky stretching late into evening.
I am reminded of a thousand sunsets shared
and trust that they’re being seen through my eyes now.
So if you’re wondering how I am doing
in the midst of your own busy day,
the rain is subsiding, and I am okay.
© Ginny Brannan 2021
You ask me “How are you doing?”
How am I supposed to answer?
What do you expect me to say?
My standard is “Better this week than last.”
At least I didn’t cry my way home from work
each day, or fall apart at the end of the week.
I sigh a lot these days…
The sunshine and spring blooms
are almost too much to bear.
I am no stranger to hardship,
but this? It’s like nothing I’ve ever felt before.
You tell me ”It’ll get better with time.”
Crawl inside my skin and convince me.
Carry the weight in your chest, the knot in your stomach
the catch in your throat, the hole in your heart…
till then, don’t ask me how I am doing
unless you’ve felt the same.
© GB 2021
