The Tangled Branch Discussion Forums

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 



 

Beautiful! I spend a good deal of time in cemetaries, and that captures it well. The nod toward 'the living' as the fingers brush was exquisite. Really enjoyed!

Con/jur/d

I love this. So much is told with the little information on the stones. They were important as family records for so long in our history. But as often, these cryptic snippets raise questions and set minds to speculating. Yes, a quiet walk through a cemetery. As I work through this one several times, the strength of the closing lines become increasingly apparent. Bravo.

Yes, those cryptic footnotes to history.  As child I recall a well-worn little back stone set into the floor of a cathedral, sadly I no longer recall which, with just the single name 'Joey'.  No dates or any other clue.  I speculated for hours about that.  Who would be important enough to have a stone in a cathedral, but not even a date of death?

Gyppo

Thanks Gyppo, Tracy, and DocCon for your replies. I'm so glad you liked this one. I have dealt with death and fear this year, and now that spring has arrived I'm hoping for better things.

HLemma wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 10, 2019 10:13 am

Empty, today of all days

when it is convenient to remember.

Letters eroded, discolored,

evidence of everyone, of no one,

stories unlike those at hospitals and airports,

where departures are balanced with arrivals.

Here,

there is only loss.

We sleuth around markers

in search of a familiar name,

past the girl of 17

who would be 81 now;

she was small

when the war ended

after claiming her neighbor,

a man of 26.

Nearby, 2 and 3 year old siblings

lost in an accident,

widows, widowers, childless parents

who survived decades in a broken world.

Your hand brushes mine,

and lingers a moment

as we navigate between stones,

our steps sinking into the fickle earth.

WOW!!! This is a gut puncher.. Great stuff

So well said - so well written... such warmth and tenderness and longing... hard to capture a life in a few carved words.

Thanks for the good reviews and kind words.