I tell myself I'll be fine as I straighten my tie.
I drive, stone-faced, feeling a leak in the cracks of my dammed demeanor.
Standing before a stained-glass door, other shadows join me.
I tell myself I'll be fine as I step reverently into your bedroom.
Pale lights reflect off the walls, casting a solemn glow.
You lay in a garden, flowers of purple sprouting as high as my head.
I pause, resolving myself for my task of love.
You are fast asleep, oblivious to me as I lay a rose near your hands,
trembling as life and death collide.
My organs tighten, muscles clench, as my body prepares for the blow.
I convince myself to look at you, and suddenly I'm walking beside you again,
feeling your hands ruffle through my hair as you laugh,
your voice ringing out from a heart capable of divine generosity,
of childish enthusiasm, and depth that could pocket the world.
Now your laughter has stopped as suddenly as your heart,
replaced by a muted cacaphony as I deny my pain.
But a storm's violence breaks the dam, and oceans run from within me.
Tears for memories had and to be made;
Tears for the deafened ear and the cold shoulder;
Tears for the care and kindess to be missed.
Water-logged eyes swell only more as I make my final goodbye.
The blue sky mocks you, rejoicing in its seeming youth,
but it too will meet its own demise along with us all.
I look up to see the top of a tree, the leaves passive, the branches inert...
but a cool wind still passes through me, ruffling my soul as a laugh is carried away.
Author notes
This poem is a tribute to Linda Bannister, a wonderful woman that passed away very recently. She was a second mother to me and my friends; she was always smiling and laughing, and never thought of herself, even when she should have. She stuck her neck out for her students and friends, no matter how much abuse and pain she took for it. Even now, I'm crying because I know people like her are too few and far between. I will always remember the wisdom she shared with me, and keep her in my heart.
R.I.P. Linda Bannister. A great teacher...a better friend.
A contest entry
- WOW ME PREWRITE QUICKIE!!!! by Heroesrox.
1000 points, ended March 13, 7 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
1 - 26 of 26
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I am breathless. Such a beautiful, divine tribute to what must have been a certainly angelic woman. To have such a creature in your life is truly a blessing, and to lose such a blessing is certainly a cause for heartbreak. This was very lovingly penned, heartfelt, and beautiful. I am sure Ms. Bannister would be touched and delighted. I am certainly touched and delighted. It is refreshing to hear such praise and emotion for someone; men so often try to hide such feelings. I admire you all the more for expressing them.
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a sad write but at the same time a wonderful tribute wow
well deserved gold :-) xx
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Thank you. I'm glad you think so. ^_^
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She sounds like she was very great! I am sorry for your loss, but glad that it turned out to be your muse for such a wonderful piece. Keep up the great work.
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She was a great person. Thank you very much.
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wow, im sorry for your loss. i just lost an uncle last weekend and a couple months ago i lost some friends in a car crash, so i can relate.
she sounds like a great person
<3 elizabeth -
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I'm sorry for your losses as well, but thank you.
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Wow. I am very sorry for your loss!!! Linda sounds like an absolutely wonderful woman! My godmother was like my second mother and I know what it's like to lose someone like that. Very saddening, yet very well penned.
Warmest,
Mylee -
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She was a wonderful woman, and yes, I was devastated when I found out. But thank you for your comment
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Great i liked the ending better than the end but thats just me i liked reading this. Wonderful write by the way i wish i could write like this but i suck :[
..<3..
Shelly -
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Heh, thank you.
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This is a lovely tribute to Linda, such a profound testament to her character, as well as to the legacy she left behind. People like her are hard to come by, and obviously, she impacted your life in such a way that the void created by her absence will never be filled... Yet, she and her wisdom will always live on through you and others whose hearts she touched.
Your words are stunning, radiance and gratitude laced with an ineffable grief known only to those who have been there. I do hope that time heals your heart, and I will keep you and all those who loved her in my thoughts, now and always.
In love and light,
Laura, aka Immortal x
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Thank you very much for your kind words.
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Awwwwwwwwww.
Any woman that reads this poem is going to melt (damned emotions).
This was beautiful. Loved it loved it loved it!!!!
Your vocabulary is rather intense for your age, and let me just tell you... it RULES.
Makes reading your stuff a whole hell of a lot more fun than reading others (I've seen some hideous stuff on this site 
)!
I love that middle stanza the most, I think, but it was all wonderful. The ending was flawless--but that is what happens when true talent and even truer emotion collide on-screen.
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Thank you. I wrote this on the day of her funeral, and I was obviously feeling very emotional. I made sure I described my feelings exactly as I felt them.
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a good poem though maybe think of breaking some of those longer lines up? here especially -
You are fast asleep, oblivious to me as I lay a rose near your hands, trembling as life and death collide.
i associate with the name here as that is my sister's name. sorry fr the loss you have had.
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that was a piercing write
bold and fearlessly written from start to ending,
you really pulled us into each line.
Blessed soul you are deep as the Pacific Ocean and many
adventures this tender woman has left to you to
write and live BOLDLY!
well done, great feast of a write!
ears/Seattle
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Thank you very much! I really like how even your replies have metaphors and similes. Because I don't write in the style you and many other spotlighted poets do, I work very hard on communicating my feelings to compensate for my word choices, and I think you got what I was trying to do. Thank you for reading.
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I truly felt every word of this poem. It was so amazing. I really don't know what else there is to say... I hope you find some solace in the memories and love within. <3
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Thank you very much for enjoying it...and I will. <3
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heavy man, heavy, beautiful and heart felt. You have my empathies. Great read.
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Thank you very much for reading.
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Oh Hun, this is a beautiful poem. I can tell you really cared about her, and I'm so sorry for your loss. I know how hard it is to lose a friend to death, and I wish I could help get you threw it. I know you're strong, and you can pull threw.
Wonderful write, great emotion and passion. <3
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Thank you so much. She was a great person that will be sorely missed.
It's "through", by the way.
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You captured everything about her and yesterday as a whole. I want to believe there is a God, so that this may not be good-bye, only an I'll see you later. She was more than a teacher. She was our mother. She was always there for us, never thinking to turn away. There were many times that she should have looked out for herself, but never would she let her children fall. I miss her so much already, but I know that she will never truly die. For her memories will live on forever and there will always be a hole in our chest from where her love once was. If you need anything, you know that you have me and many others to help you through it. Nice job babe. =]
R.I.P. Momma B
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Thanks you, Sam. Thanks a lot.
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