Happy Birthday Nic –
this bright morning,
mourning that
we cannot offer you presents
for your presence is
the one thing we would give
anything for.You are absent, yet
here is our present:
our future each year
from now,
to take the past
and shake from its
laden branches
all the gifts you once gave
which lie, wrapped in memories
waiting again and again
for their joyful opening,
and our enduring thanks.
Deeply fucking missed. But still making me laugh… The beautiful, very human paradox of memory.
Comments
2 responses to “Happy Birthday Nic – a poem of thanks”
This is beautiful. I love how you use the words “present” and “presents/presence”
Having just spent time with family unwrapping those kinds of memory-wrapped gifts from the past, this really resonates with me.
Beautiful.
Coming late to this but still wanted to say how much I love the imagery of the second stanza – and how helpful I find it.