After I'm Gone

After I’m Gone

photography by / Mecuro B. Cotto

 

what’s to become of them

after i’m gone,

this cache  of poetry

with pages formatted and leather bound

that are the very breath of me

the breadth of who i am.

 

for all that i am

in the realm of this existence

lies here

upon these embossed pages

titled, versed and dated

through the vestige of time.

 

what’s to become of them

after  i’m gone,

when my voice is silenced

by the abyss of death

in the wake of seasons

that have nurtured me well.

 

after all that i am

returns to dust,

lamenting in the benediction

of a prayer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reviews

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

This is beautiful, Kelly, questions that I have often thought of myself. All of my poems are handwritten in leather books, signed, dated, and timed. I have no children and no family to bequeath them to. I imagine after I'm gone, they will be tossed into a trash bin somewhere, never read and never known. My only way to let them breathe is in the here and now, here in this forum, shared with the ether.

[Kelly Scheppers]

I feel for your situation, Linda. Having no family to bequeath your extraordinary work to. It is only the here and now that we worry of things like this. After we pass, there will be no earthly chores to ponder...we will be free of such trivial things. I'm beginning to think it may all be left to a dear friend of mine. Time will tell, I suppose. Thank you so much for this lovely review!

[Julian]

Like the sand mandalas of the Tibetan monks, or the sand drawing of the Dine ( Navajo) so many incredible works are here for a time and then gone with no trace, except the memory of those who were blessed to experience them in their appointed time.

[Lorry]

I think this is personal to each person Kelly, with hopefully your thoughts on the subject being taken into account.
Should they become you after you are gone, spoken of in the same way as if you were in the room, or perhaps bequeathed to someone who you knew got them, and got you.
I think a lot of writers would consider being locked away in a dusty loft, their own version of purgatory, so it may be worth the bit of peace of mind it would bring you to discuss it while you are still here.
I think I'll leave instructions with a lawyer to turn it all into confetti, where each word can blow back from where it came and be rediscovered anew. 😊

[Kelly Scheppers]

Having it all turned into confetti. Now, there's an idea! Thank you, Lorry!

[Chris Shaw]

Beautiful thoughts and eloquently penned Kelly. Your poetry, leather bound and so precious to you. All the hours, all the emotion put into the composition. And when you are gone? What a question to ask yourself. I think we all do as writers. Mine, I will be satisfied to pass on to my grandchildren and hope they will pass down the family line for years. That would really please me. My poetry reflects so much about me and your poems are you. Now you have to answer the question.

Chris

[Kelly Scheppers]

I wanted to present this as an opportunity for my friends here to offer their perspective, believing I would gain a little insight in the process. Thank you most kindly, Chris!

[Chris Shaw]

You are welcome Kelly.

[Neville]

I am not surprised you penned this Kelly, I am of the firm opinion that all we scribes, tend to think the same thing and question accordingly, I know I do, and often .. I am also sure it has much to do with our own increasing sense of mortality .. Yep, the more I think about it, the more I think I'm write .. it's just that not every one of us does it quite so eloquently as thee mistress K .. N :)

[Kelly Scheppers]

Now, here's a thought...I guess I could take it with me, something to read in the afterlife. ; ) Thank you, Nev! Always good having you here!

[Neville]

My existential pleasure entirely mistress K .. That would be one helluva gift to yourself and my kind of leg-I-see :)

[Ken e Bujold]

what indeed. thankfully we have this new found technology, and so gems like this beauty shall live on through infinity. one day eons from now, a little inkling will think poem and the mystic web will buzzbomb her cranial capillaries with "After I'm Gone" and she will know.

she will know

[Kelly Scheppers]

The mystic web shall reduce me to a blimp on the radar, or is that a dust bunny? I loved the buzzbomb scenario, though. Thanks, Ken!

[Sami Khalil]

Live and let your poetry live, then leave in due time and not cleave to this world. Both and your poetry will live on, somehow, somewhere.
This was outstanding 👏.

[Kelly Scheppers]

A most definitive review, Sami. "...not to cleave to this world." It brings everything into perspective. Thank you most kindly!

[Sami Khalil]

Wowzy woooo! You are welcome Kelley

[Pete]

this one is gold. speaking for all poets throughout the ages who spilled what lies inside of them for all to read. take comfort in knowing that words are immortal and the spirit of them can live on in others with eyes to read and a heart to feel ... :)

[Kelly Scheppers]

Thank you, Pete. Actually, I was thinking on a more personal level, like what's to become of everything I've written after I'm gone. It's all in notebooks, has been for years, and I often wonder what's to become of them all. Perhaps it will be revealed to me in time to come. Jacob said our poetry is our children. Let's just say I've got a lot of kids!

[W. Barrett Munn]

Kelly,
this is truly outstanding, not a word or emotion out of place. Your best, Put a pin in it. It has the feel of both Plath and Dickinson to me, but mostly Scheppers.

Winston

[Kelly Scheppers]

I'm deeply flattered, Winston. That's quite a comparison, and I've written about both ladies! Thank you for making my day!

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Our poems are our children. We have raised them, revised them to be the best they can be and then we allow them to leave the nest and interact with readers as they will.
We have taught them well, they are our heirs...and they will carry on our name.
At least we hope some will be good enough to do that.
Yours will.
j.

[Kelly Scheppers]

Perhaps my answer will present itself in due time. For now, I'm clueless. But you're right about our poetry being our children. Boy, do I have a lot of kids! Thank you, Jacob. Your perspective is dearly noted and most appreciated!

[Ted Kniffen]

What indeed Kelly ... what happens to our chlidren when we have departed. Do we leave them to our heirs or do we let them slide into oblivion.
Perhaps Poe ... Thomas ... Shakespeare had similar thoughts ... but who knows what writing will strike a chord.

Looking to the future can be baffling, don't you think?

I like this.

[Kelly Scheppers]

This is something I've thought about for many years. I decided to write about it, to get the opinions of other poets. Thanks, Ted!