To Hold A Child
You came to me
in the misted hours
between the waking
and the dreaming —
moved into
my empty space.
You told me once,
to hold a child
is to embrace
the pain of loss.
I did not comprehend
and at one time,
I never thought I could.
Now that she’s gone,
untimely ripped
from my life
along with you,
I think I understand.
I thought that you
would haunt me most,
at least for
a little while,
but you kept
your space, as if
hesitant —
perhaps it was a kindness.
But this time
you showed yourself.
You cried for me; I think.
Do the dead still grieve?
Perhaps you love
so much that
you embrace
the living’s pain
as your own: to mourn
with those who mourn.
when I woke up,
my face was wet
when I woke up,
my face was wet
when I woke up,
my face was wet
Poem # 17 from my unpublished collection What Was Lost In The Dark (tales from the apocalypse), a poetic narrative. Not every poem in the collection will be posted in Medium.
© Darryl Willis 2020
