What I learned whilst grieving

What I learned whilst grieving

Inspired by an exercise from Kate Clanchy’s book, ‘How to Grow a Poem’ and Kate Bingham’s poem, ‘What I learned at university.’

How to fold memories away in a drawer

When to open or close a door

How to recall the sound of a voice

How to keep going when you have no choice

Where to put his empty shirts

How to dig bulbs with bare hands from the dirt

How to keep breathing when breath’s gone away

When to pretend that it’s all ok

How to sum up a life when there are no words

How to fling his remnants to the birds

Where to find a place of peace

How to embrace a moment’s release

When to hang on and when to let go

Where to carry the secrets that no-one else knows

How to abandon death’s acrid stench

Where to put a memorial bench

How not to follow your love to the grave

How not to scream when they call you brave

How to keep it together when your soul is broken

When to allow your heart to reopen

How to imbue each moment with meaning

Where to hide your nameless feelings

How to cry when you’ve no tears left

How to keep living in the face of death