INDEPENDENCE DAY
Today, I am feeling somewhat down. I really don�t know why.
I�ve been harking back in mind and heart
To people far beyond this mortal coil
Who meant so much in my life, and still do.
Mom - Janet - who died 13 years ago.
Dad and Charlie - who died just two years ago.
Rick, my best friend for twenty-five years, gone eleven years.
Pam, my friend, too, gone five years.
These people, who loved me deeply, just as I was,
And whom I loved the best I knew how,
I miss especially today.
For today is the Fourth of July, Independence Day.
And these four wonderful people
Helped me to know who I was, to love me just as they did,
And to become my own independent self.
So, today, each of them comes up in my mind and heart.
I suppose writing this poem has shown me why.
