we all fall down

i wrote this over six years ago....three months before my mom passed. this week she would have been 100 years old. thinking of her more than usual.

photo courtesy of shutterstock.com

our half thoughts seep over the edge

of good intentions

dampening positive notions

these days precious few still linger

we play ring around the rosey

with the unthinkable

who will answer our questions adequately?

and when they are answered

will we instantly curse the moment we asked them?

pockets full of posies

might be reason to smile

but when the last waltz begins to play

we’ve no grace whatsoever

ah, the pitfalls of missteps! 

there are no ashes here

still

     spinning spinning

we all fall down

 

Reviews

[jacob erin-cilberto]

this is a hauntingly beautiful poem...no ashes here, not in our minds anyway...just the spinning, the falling down without her...the questions we can no longer ask---

i really miss my mom...i really feel this poem immensely...

her last waltz was silent as she watched what went on around her...fading into twilight.

j.

[Lydia Shutter]

Thank you for sharing your emotions in this review, Jacob. Yes, they are missed. Lydi**

[Baby Ricochet]

We think parents are going to live forever, then they don't. Life is a b***h like that. Great poem

[Lydia Shutter]

How true. Thanks for the review, Mark. Lydi**

[Ana Papaya]

Haunting. The song itself, I never understood until I was older.
People, even the greats, will all eventually fall. But we catch and hold onto the memories.
My own parents are aging. I love my mother, because she is my mother. But my father I will miss terribly.
:( Sad poem but so beautiful written

[Lydia Shutter]

We do hold onto the memories...and they are precious indeed. Thank you for your review, Ana. Lydi**

[emmajoy]

Sad, so sad. Your words truly express your emotions before that time... and, lingers today, six years later... as happens when a light's still seen but flickers in the wind, at times

Your words weep the page, dear Lydi. Can understand your doubts, needs, feelings, but nobody knows how another person feels, deep, deep inside. (You)

[Lydia Shutter]

Thank you so much, sweet Emma. You treat my emotions kindly and I appreciate it. Lydi**

[emmajoy]

August is a month and a half... .

[Lydia Shutter]

You so understand!

[emmajoy]

yes... on this occasion I don't have need to try..

[Lydia Shutter]

(((((Emma)))))

[emmajoy]

I can truly feel that and maybe, just maybe, the depth of my thanks will fly your way.

[Lyn Anderson]

First off, there are people in our lives we don't ever stop missing -- and that is why the emotions of this poem come through so strongly -- secondly, you have so eloquently used the old song so well, which is hard to do, since we likely have all borrowed a line or two from this most innocent, yet dark of children's rhymes, at one time or another. Very nicely done.

[Lydia Shutter]

Using lines from children's songs is a widely used practice. I thought the contrast of innocence and the heavy sadness was a good contrast. Thanks for the review, KL. Lydi**

[Shabeeh Haider]

Beautifully written. We are all slowly and gradually heading towards the "last waltz". How long can we spin before we fall down?
Your mom is in a place where the waltz will go on forever, where the spinning will continue and there will be no falling down.
My prayers for her and for you.

[Lydia Shutter]

What a lovely thing to say, Shabeeh. Thank you for the compassionate review. Lydi**

[Coyote Poetry]

Amazing poetry dear friend.
"pockets full of posies
might be reason to smile
but when the last waltz begins to play
we’ve no grace whatsoever
ah, the pitfalls of missteps! "
I loved the above lines. Thank you Lydia for sharing the excellent poetry.
Coyote

[Lydia Shutter]

Thank you very much, John. Always appreciate your reviews. Lydi**

[Coyote Poetry]

Always my pleasure to read your work and you are welcome Lydia.