Our imagination can reach past the stars
although there's more than we could ever imagine
with a little thought
you and I together, could change everything.

On this night
I honor you
Candles lit
Your favorite food and wine laid out
Your picture graces my altar
My heart is open
Please, won't you join me?

Crisp leaves blow to and fro
Blustery fall morning edged in winter's kiss
The last day of October
Spirits roam and wolves howl
Gibbous moon hangs low
Scents of wood fires, caramel and face paint
Permeate the chilled air
I've got a treat for you
Tricks too!
Abound through a night of celebration
Altar laid out with orange and black
Build courage for the coming dark
Banish evil intent by candle light
Your picture is central
Your memory always bright
Come visit with me
Speak softly
On this Sawhain night

Smoky jazz music floats on air
Carried by the whispers of prohibition
Deep woods moonshine
Flashing smiles from pearls to cigar tips
Soft velvet red coating lips
Hiding behind champagne glasses
Their fresh diamonds sing of blood
I watch from the office chair
Wing backed, cushioned
Fit for a queen
Bayou queen with swamp water veins
Ebony skin like satin
Whiskey eyes that take it all in
I built this from nothing, hole in the wall
This is my town
You have to pay to play
My debt book is thick
Your names like a mantra I hum beneath the saxophone tune
I'll get my money
*Or I'll get you

Body. Mind. Heart. Soul.
Slowly each piece is coming into focus
Loss is spoken of in many ways
The shock of it for some is like winter
For other's, a desert born of oceans
given away through tears
The darkness taking those closest with it
All experiences unique
Mine was/is no exception
On the other side of raw, though still sore
In a constant state of Medic! Medic!
When in crowds, looking for just you
I miss you.
A simple idea. A complex emotion.
The daily and nightly revisit of what hope's absence feels like
Baring down on you with the ferocity and venom
Of a hungry cobra, weeks without prey

This is the face of grieving
Vicious.
Cruel.

Yet it's heart is one of softness
For through it all
Every pain. Every nightmare
I have a night sky full of memories
Your smile. Your voice. Your love.
*Grief will never touch those