i wrote the following poem in a creative writing class in 2006, in the style of W.H. Auden's "Funeral Blues."
death of a loved one
tell everyone to stay in bed,
surrender dreams for sleep instead.
pack up the pictures, the letters, the gifts,
send away the memories on the train you missed.
any happy thoughts now become
a gentle murmur behind a beating drum.
every smile is forced, every song just noise,
and life is mandatory; there's no longer any choice.
He was my heart's desire, my soul's rebirth,
He was my bright sun, and I his lighted Earth.
He filled my thoughts by day, my dreams by night,
I feared it would end one day; I was right.
Uproot the trees, they don't stand so tall anymore.
Take down the leaves they once beautifully wore.
Shut off the clocks, time has stopped in this season.
Everything is now without meaning, without reason.
