What happens now
When you’ve taken your last breath
My eyes fill with tears
Your body, so still and quiet
The doctor says he’s sorry
And the nurses ask me to say farewell
What happens now
When I’ve finished reciting the tale of the life you led
Greet the people I have not seen in decades, until today
Carefully load your casket into the hearse
Squeezing the bars tightly as if it was your hand
And watch the car take you away
Who now
Will give me the words of wisdom
When Mum and I butt heads
Or tell me the next guy I date will ‘be the one’
Warning me away from the red flags
And reinforce my place in the world
Who now
Will recount to me their day
Or send messages just with love hearts
Ask for help with internet banking
Will challenge me to a game of monopoly
And always put hotels on Mayfair
What happens now
When the flowers die
The meals are eaten
The cards are packed away
The calls stop coming
And visitors return home
What happens now
After I pick your final resting place
Choose the wording for a plaque
That will reflect what’s left of you
Sixty two years young
And yet I stand in this cemetery alone
Who now
Provides me the life advice that I desperately need
Will walk me down an aisle to give me away
Who will look into my big, blue eyes
The ones I inherited from you
And tell me to chase my dreams
Who now
Do I send ‘I miss you, Dad’ texts to
Without you here
Just to simply say, I love you
Who will wrap their arms around me and tell me it will get easier
And that the pain will pass
What happens now
When everyone’s life carries on
As if nothing ever happened
But I stand here, in the darkest of spaces
With an overwhelming sense of loneliness
Alone with a shattered heart
About the Creator
Gemma Kinden
I used to think that life was black and white when I was younger. How very wrong I was. My family opted for me to focus my life around what people think is the 'safe' career and in turn, I lost my creative world. And now its time to fly!
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