Oh Grandmother, how majestic is your dignity!
How sweeping your wisdom!
You are history's midwife, partner, observer, recorder.
What wondrous things you must have seen and experienced! Birth and death are old
friends to you--
how many beloveds have you cherished into this world,
and cherished out of it?
How many bittersweet memories are inscribed
with names that only you remember?
Do not let us lose your wisdom, oh Grandmother.
Show us how you snuggled with your first puppy.
Share with the sweep and smell of the fields you played in,
the stars you counted, the shadows that frightened you,
the trouble you and your best friend got into,
the taste of cotton candy at the fair.
Tell us the story of your favorite locket,
or why your eyes grow sad and deep
over an old photograph.
Tell us what to expect and what to watch for.
Tell us what to avoid.
But most of all, tell us what not to miss.
Do not leave us empty-handed, oh Grandmother. |