The Silent Sky

I found that the birth of my first child helped me make peace with the past.

 It was a long time ago you left us,

You went without a warning or a sign,

You took all you wanted to take with you,

Running like a memory from your mind.

 

I slept like an old man in winter,

I dreamt we were dancing in the snow,

With your soft white arms wrapped around me,

And your warm heart helping me grow.

 

And all I need to keep me full now,

Is the beauty that came to me at birth,

The spectacles of season, 

A respect for their good reasons,

Rising and shining, growing and dying,

Living day to day on this earth.

 

And all we need to keep our spirits strong,

Is the love and the laughter,

The peace that comes after,

And the hopeful happy feeling of a song.

 

So let our voices rise together,

Let our hearts and bodies fly,

Like clouds we float like a feather,

Drifting slowly through the silent sky.

 

I thought of all the highways we had traveled,

Remembered all the rivers we had crossed,

But I couldn’t seem to find

One face I’d left behind,

Or a single sight of land I had lost.

 

And I thought of all the people I knew once,

All passengers or prisoners of life,

When I saw my son sucking on the n****e,

On the ripe full breasts of my wife.

 

And all I need to keep me full now,

Is the beauty that came to me at birth,

The spectacles of season, 

A respect for their good reasons,

Rising and shining, growing and dying,

Living day to day on this earth.

 

And all we need to keep our spirits strong,

Is the love and the laughter,

The peace that comes after,

And the hopeful happy feeling of a song.

 

So let our voices rise together,

Let our hearts and bodies fly,

Like clouds we float like a feather,

Drifting slowly through the silent sky.

Reviews

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You write experientially of life's pain with authority and resolve. This is good.

[E. M. Murren]

You have told this story so well. You have used strong imagery as well as wonderful metaphors. It is a deeply emotional tale told with grace and eloquence. Well done.

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This is really great!! It is moving and I think it gives a vivid image!!! I really loved this poem. The last stanza is my favorite.