If I Knew Grief by Sylvia Clare

 

Harvest Moon | Micky Findlay

Grief

If I knew grief
how would I encounter
the stoic inside me? 
Could she still be 
strong, resilient, 
maintain equanimity?

If grief came to me
and begged to be 
allowed into my life
would I melt or crumble
under the weight
of so much?

If grief came after me
chasing me into death,
I might walk unwillingly
or else run ahead, eager 
to see what it might be like.
What can I look forward to?

If I found grief hiding
under a stone, or behind
a tree, I would laugh, hold out 
my hand and say come dance
with me here and now. 
It is only a moment of change.

If I saw grief sitting in church
mourning a loss, I would stay,
share the moment, reflect on
so many losses in my own life. 
‘Find me a peppercorn from a house 
where no one has died’, asked the Buddha.

Grief flowed through me, when you died,
sharp as knives honed in fire. The moment
passed. Like falling autumn leaves, 
we all lose. The space left allows 
something new. If we can let go
and just look up, the sky is still there.

The extract comes from my memoir No Visible Injuries.

© Sylvia Clare

Sylvia Clare

Sylvia Clare came into writing later in life as result of her journey to find out who she was, having struggles with mental health herself for most of her life, and wanting to help others too. She mainly writes memoir and poetry, or essays about mindfulness, mental health and living well. She cares passionately about kindness in the world, developing compassion and caring for the environment. She is a deeply spiritual free thinker and does not adhere to any single religion, but believes everyone should seek to explore their own deeper spiritual natures and find their own truths. She lives with her soulmate and spends much of her time gardening organically, growing her own food and writing. MY books can be found on Amazon here: Amazon.com: Sylvia Clare: books, biography, latest update. 

Her website is http://www.clarity-books.com/.

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