A few last grains of sand remain
To tumble through the glass.
The hardest duty to endure
Is watch a loved one pass.
The one who stays, will feel a pain
Unique in every way.
That's just the price of being loved,
One all will have to pay.
Another waits to do his job,
One he has yet to fail,
Though even when he does it well,
Those left against him rail.
This time he's waiting patiently,
That's not always the case.
Sometimes he proves a great surprise,
An unexpected face.
He joins the waiters waiting game
Yet doesn't speak a word.
One knows he's there but won't be seen
And cannot be deterred.
The final act of any soul,
Escape of flesh and bone,
Is aided by a guiding hand
So it won't be alone.
The one who wears the Reapers cloak
Is oft' misunderstood,
The focus of unreasoned fear,
Though what he's done is good.
The fear we feel, is for the hole
We'll have to navigate.
The emptiness left by our loss.
It's sure to devastate.
We that stay, can't really know,
Despite our heart's belief,
The depth of peace an ailing soul
Can find in death's relief.
Now, he that guards the Rainbow Bridge
Brings peace, if one can see,
A boon companion in our turn,
With our soul's flying free.
Richard Higley © Dec. 21, 2017
