My Brother's Stone

 My Brother’s Stone

In this place where
five generations rest,
our parents’ newly set stones
 right by yours more weathered,
I sit and sigh and cry.
They are mine,
these tears,
though I cry for them,
 for you,
for what just could not be.
As time goes by, though,
they alter and lighten,
as though compassion
overflows my heart,
wraps me in
my own tenderness.
I raise my gaze
to the leaves of autumn
that sparkle
against a brilliant blue sky.
My shoulders relax,
heart settles,
spirit widens once again.
I rise from this perch
on my brother’s stone,
move forward into my life,
carrying with me the love
we share
with less and less
 despair.

Sarah Carlson
October 15, 2020