Forebears

- The Seasons Of Grief: Chapter V - Poem VI -

Never be so lost, you forget your roots,

Never hold onto such roots that you forget how to grow

With Sandra and Jimmy, it was lakes in the summer sun,

Golf carts humming beneath an American road that runs

Her laughter echoes in the ripples of a swim,

Hitching a ride on his tractor, he gives the lawn a fresh trim

With Lonna and Tommy, it was flavors rich and bold,

Steamed buns, bowls of rice, and the TV still going in the cold

Shopping bags heavy with treasures from home,

The rhythm of Taiwan is all I’ve ever known

James and Scott are the names I bear,

A legacy carved from Scottish glares

Two women built a family across the Pacific,

The dreams all led to me, which is why I hate to risk it

Your sight dims, your hearing fades,

The calls grow shorter, and then one day they’ll stop,

I’ll keep every voicemail in your memory,

All evidence of who you are and were,

So nothing slips away in forgotten poem similes

When the silence comes, I’ll ache for the voices,

The stories I should’ve asked you to tell,

The wisdom I should’ve written down,

Only then in the quiet,

Will I know the disturbing hollow of your absence,

The vastness of missing you

You’ll stay alive in my head,

The lakes, the food, the culture never dead

What fades doesn’t truly leave,

Your dreams will always be stitched to me

If I didn’t know better,

I’d always think you're still here now,

My forebears, I still feel you around