Carrying Grief
I’ve been carrying grief
Since my mid-twenties.
I carry it in my bag.
I carry it in my pockets.
I carry it in my heart.
I can’t let go.
The loss is not something
You can just leave
Abandoned by the side of the road,
Or buried in a box
Under a tree.
That loss stays with you,
Attaches itself to you,
Drops into your pockets
Or into your bags.
It stays in your heart.
You just have to accept
The weight of it.
It does get lighter
But it never goes away.
So, leave room in your pockets
And space in your bags
And carry your grief with pride
Wherever you go.
Roy W. Backes
© 2021
Roy W. Backes - Poetry 