Between you and me
is an ellipsis
that spans this life
but can’t quite reach the next
All the things I said
that you didn’t hear
and all the things
I didn’t say
but meant to
and now I never can,
for your ears
are filled with earth
and worms
and bugs
and all manner of bacteria
claiming you,
taking you back
And the space grows
between those three dots
past, present, future
time and worlds
and thoughts
and unsaid
words
fill the space
And yet
it feels so empty
Check out Poets United for more poems in keeping with the season of All Hallows Even and Day of the Dead.
Mary,
This is a very depthful poem of love and remembrance. It reminded me so much of my late mother. How much I still miss her voice. The unsaid and the growing gaps in time.
It truly commemorates the spirits of those who have gone, at this time of the year…
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Thank you so much, Eileen. I was thinking of my mom and dad, and others too, when I wrote it.
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Neither words nor varmints and germs can fill the emptiness, though it may become less disturbing. I have a death in my life that I fear I might never come to terms with. Powerful writing.
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That is the hard thing – all the things we wish we could say to them….but maybe they can hear. It is worth a try, especially on the day of the dead. Smiles.
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This is heartwrenchingly beautiful, Mary! I am so honored that you shared this poem with us.
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Thank you, Sanaa. It’s been a long time since I shared with Poets United. Good to be back. 🙂
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I agree it is heartwrenching but we must always remember to leave nothing unsaid in a relationhip, lest we give cause for misunderstanding which may lead to that emptiness within us.
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I love this voice – the blending of the laconic and the heartbroken, the tone perfectly judged.
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Thank you, Rosemary.
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It’s great to see you back..and with such an amazingly good poem to boot!
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Thanks so much, Tim!
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This makes me think of all the things I wish I had said to my mother. Sadly her last years were stolen by Alzheimer’s. Perhaps she hears me now in her place of restoration.
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I relate to this so much. The space between us and the deceased… the words we should’ve said, but didn’t… this poem hits me where I live… at the ellipsis.
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Thanks Barry. I’m both glad and sorry this resonates with you.
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It’s the human condition, isn’t it? Someone wiser than me once said that nothing human is foreign to me. 🙂
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A very clever, nice, way to tell of the space left open with death of someone close. There is a similar one when a close relationship has been breached by one, sans the worms and other stuff that grows.
..
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Thanks Jim. Yeah, I’m not sure why I felt compelled to include the little decomposition details…
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