A decade

Today’s anniversary marks ten years
A boundless collection of bottled tears
Yet there is beauty in time and its ability to heal
As we learn to grow around the grief we feel

There are days it becomes impossible to fathom
As our hearts gape open with a you-sized chasm
And others are simpler and we feel a little lighter
Holding onto each other just a tiny bit tighter

My greatest fear is that I may gradually forget
The moments between goodbye and the day we met
So your name is interwoven into our daily conversation
And your life story reads like a beautiful narration

What I would do to share one last memory
A stark reminder that this life is temporary

Our lives have been forever changed
Dismantled, marred, and re-arranged
Yet we have no choice but to continue on
As we remember a brother and a precious son

Your little sister became a mother
The love of your life married another
Mom and dad nearly couldn’t cope
But were saved by grace and now live in hope

So I cast my mind back to your final day
Huddled in a hospice room as we started to pray
We held your hand as you took your last breath
And watched you gently transition from life to death

We keep our faith because we believe
That joy and dancing awaits those who grieve
So we yearn for that day our sorrow is no more
As we are welcomed home to eternity’s shore


(Written in honour of my brother, Wesley, on his 10th heaven anniversary)