Fragile Mourning

Fragile Mourning
by: R.A. Slater
5/20/12

How fragile breaks the Mourning
When the wounding is the freshest
Like glass shattering at the feather's touch
Undoing all the healing that time has wrought
All it takes is just one moment
A smell, a phrase, a familiar object
And it all comes crashing in
The loved ones gone ahead
Having finished their race on this earth
And moved on to heavenly realms
To stand on what is now our sidelines
As we continue to run our race
Sometimes staggering beneath the weight
Though we cannot hear their cheers
They are shouting nonetheless
To keep plodding onward
And fight the good fight
To pick ourselves up
No matter how many times we break
For the race must be finished
That is our victory
And we shall see them again one day

Memories of You

Memories of You
by: R.A. Slater
4/13/12

How thin this image
Seemingly inconsequential
These simple lines and colors
That coalesce into a you I never knew
A single moment captured
Before I was ever born
And yet I can still see
The you of my memories
In the gentleness of your smile
I can even hear the bubbles of your laugh
Memories of times spent together
Words fail me even now
For they cannot express
The depth of your effect
On the lives touched by you
How deeply we feel your absence
Though we are at peace
Knowing you are in heaven
Until we can meet again in that place
And dance together at Jesus' feet
Our memories of you will be treasured

In memory of Audrey A. (Isabell) Allen
1/21/1952-4/3/2012

Bittersweet the Memories

Bittersweet the Memories
by: R.A. Slater
11/19/11

Oh, brother of mine...
where did you go?
How can it be...
that you are gone from us?
There are no words...
to describe the pain inside...
it is too new and sharp.
Tears still flow from the shock...
from the gaping hole in our lives.
But memory remains...
as I hold the picture of you.

Ten of us gathered around our sire...
memories from a lifetime ago.
All the love, laughter, tears and drama...
that goes along with “Family”.
Each set of memories unique...
As the one who holds them.

How you were there when needed...
A strong arm in times of crisis.
Of winter holidays of cheer...
And summer picnics and slower days.
Always ready to lend a helping hand...
Rain, sleet, snow or shine.
How deeply you are missed already...
A treasure unredeemed.
How bittersweet the memories...
for they are all we have left.
How the good outweighs the bad...
to shine through this dark night.

Author's note: This poem is dedicated to the memory of my brother Glenn R. Slater who passed from this world into the next on October 31, 2011. I have a feeling there will be more to follow, because as the poem above states, it is all too new still. Indeed, almost a month later it still doesn't feel 'real'.