Poetry

Letting Go (1/4/23)

In his last days
I whispered in his ear
You can leave this suffering
Your time is over here

I know he didn’t want to
And I wanted to hold tight
But I had to let him go
Let him end his fight

And since that August morning
When he took his last breath
I’ve let go of so many things
I wonder what is left

Growing old and wrinkly
Traveling to exotic places
Watching our kids grow up
Smiling into our grandkids faces

Letting go of that bright future
Of him and I together
Now ahead is dark and nebulous
I’m afloat without my tether

Where before I was a wife
Now a widow I am called
How to let go of an identity
When forever is what I vowed

And all of this letting go
It makes me so angry inside
But I have to let that go too
It doesn’t fix the hurt–I’ve tried

Letting go is not forgetting
Don’t make that mistake
Our love and all our memories
Are way too precious to forsake

Letting go is not easy
Some days I miserably fail
But it’s the only way I’ll survive
Until we meet across the veil