Say annihilation, liquidation, termination,
You bit the dust, gave up the ghost,
Met your Maker, rode into the sunset,
Cross over into Jordan.
Say you are asleep in Christ,
Returned to the Earth, translated to glory,
Or in the arms of the Maker.
Say it doesn't matter if you are
Pushing up daisies, lying six feet under
Or if you've bought the farm.
Say you have still breathed the last,
Are lost, come to an end, passed on,
Or croaked.
Say you are no longer with us,
Rubbed out, in the great beyond
And gone to your Eternal reward.
Say you've succumbed, gone to a new life,
Gone home, made the change,
Been carried off by angels,
Or are on a long sleep.
Say you are transcended, descended,
Done in, cashed in,
Withered away.
Say you are mertilized.
Say anything except
The one thing that is true.
Say to me you understand
What it is like to wake up
Without you.
Submit poetry to Bones, City Paper, 812 Park Ave., Baltimore, MD 21201 or editorial@citypaper.com. Please include your address and daytime phone number.
