WE SHALL NOT CEASE TO BE
When I cease to be
And there are for me
No more bends in the road
No more grand adventures to come
I shall not cease to be
For me there is no end
I will live on
Forever and a day
In the happy dreams of my children
And the hopes of the ones I love.
For our children reflect the best in us
And pass it on down the line.
The dreams of our children live on in the lives
Of their children, you see
And that’s why I know each precious one
Has just a spark in them of me.
In Elliot’s lopsided grin and the twinkle in her eye—
When you see her merrily twirling round
I hope you will think of me.
For she is part of me and I of her.
In her I will live on.
Drowns in books and the tales that they tell.
Her mother passed that love on to her
But she got it from me, as well.
The serious side of me I see in Davis
Her way of silently studying a thing just so
To understand how it must go
Though no gift in math I own
That’s hers and Gil’s alone
And one that inspires pure awe.
What about our sweet rambunctious Sam,
Who gives a squeeze and hug on the fly and then is off, posthaste?
What of me is in him?
The glint in his eye, his grin?
Somewhere in there
Is a hint of me and someday
It’ll come out.
You’ll see
And someone will say
That’s just the way of her
Isn’t that just like his JuJu!
Oh my many friends, can you not see?
We shall never cease to be!
For us there is no end.
We will live on
Forever and a day.
In the glorious dreams of our children
And the lives of the ones we love.
Judy, that's a lovely poem!
ReplyDeleteThis is so beautiful. While I have never met your precious grands, I know what you say is true. Once, right after my dad died, I wrote this song that included - "When I look at my hands, I see my father's hands, and in the mirror, my father's eyes." But you are right. It is so much more than that. There is an essence, an energy. I spoke to my brother Dan the other day. This after a particularly grueling week emotionally. When we hung up I knew that my dad was in that conversation as well. And it was good.
ReplyDeleteYou are a great writer and philosopher, my friend. Thanks for this piece.