If I Die This Afternoon…
No one can ever say it all.
What if I die this afternoon?
What words will die with me
That I should have shared at noon?
What words will die with me
That I might have said too late?
Is there a right time for silence –
A perfect time for words to wait?
Have I left unspoken affirmations
That should have been shared?
Have I failed to let folks know
How very much I cared?
If I die this afternoon,
I want you to be sure and know
That my love for you and God are deep.
I hope the depths of it will glow.
I hope my unwavering faith
Was an inspiration to you,
And my prayers were comforting
When you were feeling blue.
If I die this afternoon,
May you smile when you think
Of the things I did so sweet –
And forget the things that stink!
May my words on blogs and cards
Live on in your loving hearts,
And keep you remembering how
Reaching out’s where loving starts.
If I die this afternoon,
Take care of my dear Bob.
He needs me to help him dress,
And do any technology job!
Take care of my TazE, too.
She relies on me for her meals.
I spoil her with hamburger
And know just how she feels.
Let my blogging friends know
That JanBeek will no longer send.
Give them this last post,
“Jan’s gone to her eternal end.”
If I die this afternoon,
Be sure to help it to be true:
As folks celebrated my birth,
They’ll cheer my departure, too.
They won’t cry that I have left.
Don’t mourn and feel bad –
Know that I am in Heaven
Reunited with Mom and Dad.
Know that I will be at the gate
To greet you when you ascend.
And live your life with dreams
Unfulfilled until the very end.
Never stop dreaming big,
As Bob Goff wrote in his book.
Live fully each day you’re here,
With new thoughts and delights to cook.
If I die this afternoon,
Let Bob know it’s alright
To find another love in life –
Someone to hug and hold him tight.
Tell my kids that I always did
My best to leave a loving legacy.
I pray they’ll smile more than frown
When things come up to remember me.
But of course, the chances that I am going to die this afternoon are slim. I am a healthy 81-year-old who expects to live happily to celebrate my 100th birthday, BUT…
“If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn’t brood. I’d type a little faster.”
Isaac Asimov
A post about quotes on “The Art of Blogging” yesterday inspired my poem. Cristian posted it and several other good quotes on Cristian Mihai… https://artofblogging.net/2020/09/23/writing-quotes-to-inspire-you-to-punch-the-damn-keys/
What inspires your writing?
I have an old faded cardboard with poems on it posted inside my kitchen cabinet door. They are poems gathered by my mom in 1936, the year she & Dad married – and she moved from her family in Washington to live the rest of her 89 years in California. She had most of those poems memorized.
One of my favorites reads:
“When I quit this mortal shore,
And mosey round the earth no more,
Don’t weep, don’t sigh, don’t sob –
I may have struck a better job.
Don’t go and buy a large bouquet
For which you’ll find it hard to pay,
Don’t mope around and feel all blue –
I may be better off than you.
Don’t tell the folks I was a saint
Or any old thing that I ain’t.
If you have jam like that to spread,
Please hand it out before I’m dead.
If you have roses, bless your soul,
Just pin one in my buttonhole,
While I’m alive and well today.
Don’t wait until I’ve gone away.”
Poet unknown
What would you want people to remember about you if your doctor told you your days are numbered? All of ours are, you know.
By God’s Grace,
I’ll see you tomorrow.
Hugs,
JanBeek
