The Ghosts
And still they go on living in one’s head,
all those we’ve said goodbye to all these years –
the undeparted, ever-present dead
for whom we shed so many anguished tears.
I promise you that no-one disappears!
My husband wanders down the corridor
from his old office which he had before:
pauses, smiles, vanishes. My little cat
nudges me with her head or gentle paw,
invisibly. No, love's not ended yet.
Written for dVerse, where for the next few weeks I am guest hosting Poetry Form: Dizain.
Also linked to Poetic Bloomings P.E.O.D. Memoir Chapbook Challenge, July 17: Haunting
Written for dVerse, where for the next few weeks I am guest hosting Poetry Form: Dizain.
Also linked to Poetic Bloomings P.E.O.D. Memoir Chapbook Challenge, July 17: Haunting
Very nice. I especially liked this line: "the undeparted, ever-present dead"
ReplyDeleteI learned to live with ghosts a long time ago. I don’t like the emptiness when they’re not there.
ReplyDeleteOh, Kim, how I love this comment!
DeleteI enjoyed this one, and that you used iambic to give it a rhythm.
ReplyDeleteLovely.
ReplyDeleteI like this Rosemary. The spirit of your husband in the hall was touching. Well written.
ReplyDeleteSuperb. I've seen my mother's ghost in the garden, my dog's ghost walk past my room. I don't believe in ghosts of course, even with an abundance of evidence, but I do believe in the tenacity of the human mind, the sting of love, the beauty of sadness. Thank you
ReplyDeleteBeautifully structured, and a lovely meditation on the lasting power of love.
ReplyDeletea sense of contentment pervades, really like this
ReplyDeleteNot all of us are so gifted at to be aware of such happenings. Thanks for sharing in your poem
ReplyDeletemuch love...
There is quite a congregation in there, all stepping into the limelight as the memories bring them to life. Your poem is haunting and poignant.
ReplyDeleteI should be afraid of these ghosts but I am not.Our loved ones do go on living in our head.
ReplyDeleteI love that image of your husband, it says so much in a few lines, I like also the way the form is present but doesn't intrude.
ReplyDeleteThis is so lovely. What Jim Feeney said is what I noticed, too, about the form here.
ReplyDeletenudges me with her head or gentle paw,
ReplyDeleteinvisibly. No, love's not ended yet.
Good times together sustains itself in afterlife. It must be true, Rosemary, when one rejoices it its 'presence'
Hank
We carry our dead with us, always.
ReplyDeleteHi! Your Dizain is dizzying!! I also have those undeparted wandering around in my mind. Seems like more and more these days. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete"the undeparted, ever-present dead" - Oh, I love that line, Rosemary. What a thoughtful,
ReplyDeletebeautifully written poem, and ode to love.