Passing Grief Memory I think of my mother and father Happiness reigns They're back together again Eleven years apart Death brought separation But not forever Romance blossoms in Heaven. Down here on earth The loss is great Moving on without them Mother wasn't present on my Wedding Day Now father won't see his first grandchild from me I'm an orphan now My age doesn't matter. My memories of mother Cooking, cleaning Looking after father She loved to dance, dad didn't She was artistic, creative spirit She inspired me. I think of my father Wise, old owl Prayerful and charitable Always giving to the needy Teaching us kids not to be greedy Materialism was never a measurement of worth. Together they instilled morals in us children To give without conditions Reach out to the hurting Love the lonely Be supportive and dependable Keep promises and confidences Do this with a cheerful countenance. There was a dark side too For there's no happiness without grief No love without loss No pain without gain No fear where courage cannot rear. When mum passed on I was at a selfish age No one mattered bar me Mum's wisdom, what do you mean? I was immortal, invincible, indestructible Then your death shattered that I crashed! Eleven years on together with dad I learned to appreciate Take note of his intelligence Pray together, grow together We became close. Even healed the rift Of my childhood A new fresh path Of honesty, openness, one on one We began a journey Then God called you home. So here I am alone Walking through maturity My own family, with hubby Maintaining relationships With my siblings Making you proud As I continue living Or try to. It's so hard without you Can't find a reason for all this Continue to what Where am I going? Where is my past? Trying to overcome Feeling like I can't Write poetry, heal my soul And hope one day This grief will pass. � Elizabeth 25th April, 2001 "I lost my father in September 2000, and my mother eleven years previous. This poem is about my loss reflecting on what my parent's taught me and how to develop my character in becoming a better person. This poem is a tribute to the good things they gave me in this even crediting the struggle I had with my father and mending our rift from childhood. This is for you mum and dad, I'll always love you."