You went before we could comprehend or blink
So unexpected a trail of shock, is this a dream?
Away in twenty seconds just after talking to your dad
No hint, sign nor mention of time running out
So uncharacteristically unkind and cruel
But you never knew either of the little time you had.
The center of your father’s universe, his employee and mate
Leaving a black hole of wishes and wallowing sorrow
Should’ve done this, said that, made the last days count
Been aware of every risk each athlete may face
And have a heart monitor in place before it was too late.
The six-foot tower who helped carry his grandfather's casket,
sparing him from enduring your fate
The winning boxer who stopped his small car, packed with fiancé, kids and bags,
to squeeze in a grandmother and shield her from the rain on the street.
Too late for a Jamaican wedding, for birthday twenty-six
parent’s ambitions, sing-a-longs, where’s the jokester on family dates?
Replaced by granite engraved with your name
Cement no big hugs, no pop-ins, no chance of a goodbye.
Time passes, the ducts dry up
The gut creeps back home from the ground
Time to get up, back to work, go on,
The strange dreams remain, the regrets and questions build
No answers nor healing can be found in agony’s space
Exclusive to those who love then lose way too soon.
A light may visit on hard days and memorial dates
That opens our minds to talk to you straight
Pouring to a spirit we hope is present
Can you hear me mate? Do you know what I’m saying?
Where did you go? Will we see you again?
Or it is merely unbearably all too late
