The sun is shining, this cold wintery day. I am feeling exuberant about the approach of Christmas, and cannot believe it is only one week away. When did that happen?
On Tuesday, a beautiful friend opened an umbrella to discover there was a heart cut out of the cheerful fabric. Here is my poem to her and her mother-in-law. I have decided that when I die, I am going to have bought colorful umbrellas for my friends, and each one will be missing a heart-shaped piece of fabric, so I can look down and give them heart-shaped kisses when it rains.
The First Rain
She opens the umbrella left by her mother-in-law when she died.
There is a heart shape cut out of the fabric, a big one.
We contemplate what would motivate such action, until, one day,
I see her mother-in-law looking down through the heart when it rains,
parting the tears with her kisses,
shaped like hearts.