Home   Home

Farewell My Brother

by Tony Whitaker

Bury me not in the cool red clay
That mellow earth of my native state
Stand not upon some neat cut grass
Watered by those wasted tears

My wish for a funeral is a simple one
Friends and families gather for fun,
Play some tunes, sing some songs
Sip something cool, whatever you choose

Inter me not amid that crop,
Harvested from some far away spot,
Those cold and gray granite blocks
Where names are blurred by all the years
Of mold and moss and relentless rain
When no one is left to feel the pain

For all, one day, the Lord arrives
Since no one here gets out alive
So turn my soul-less ship to dust
Slip it into some simple cup
Where those, who wish, can come and watch
As those who wish may take it up
Where I found love and lonesome thoughts,
Like riding my Harley
To some magnificent mountain top
My wife rides with me
to our spot

So when I leave this planet Earth
A special place where souls are birthed
Watch my dust in the wind rise high
Mourn not for when this body dies
My spirit flies to paradise


10/09/2014

Author's Note: Goodbye my borther. I will see you on the other side!!

Posted on 11/20/2008
Copyright © 2024 Tony Whitaker

Member Comments on this Poem
Posted by Kristina Woodhill on 11/20/08 at 07:15 PM

Your writing has gone to another level in these last couple of poems, imho. This is terrific.

Posted by Sandy M. Humphrey on 11/20/08 at 07:26 PM

My friends laugh at me when I say, play this song at my funeral or I heard you can be creamated and put into fireworks, and have poets and circus elephants...in otherwords celebrate the life you lived for the life you go to is paradise. smh.

Posted by Charlie Morgan on 11/20/08 at 08:03 PM

...yes, as C.S. Lewis said. "...it's as it should be." nice rendition of Rock o' Ages, eh?

Posted by George Hoerner on 11/20/08 at 08:06 PM

Tony such a simple yet stirring piece. It is very nicely done sir. It is the way I'd like to be remembered if at all.

Posted by Gregory O'Neill on 11/20/08 at 08:06 PM

Hey Tony. High marks all across, this is excellent. Death really is more universal than life; everyone dies but not everyone lives. And to know where one is bound for, the true blessing! Thanks.

Posted by Delilah Coyne on 11/22/08 at 02:53 AM

I love the flow of this piece. Beautifully written.

Posted by Glenn Currier on 07/21/09 at 06:03 PM

I find so much freedom at different levels in this poem. Freedom from over attachment to "this old body," freedom from regret, freedom to live beyond, freedom to love the survivors. Wonderful poem, Tony.... particularly meaningful in terms of my recent loss.

Return to the Previous Page
 

pathetic.org Version 7.3.2 May 2004 Terms and Conditions of Use 0 member(s) and 2 visitor(s) online
All works Copyright © 2024 their respective authors. Page Generated In 0 Second(s)