Love like Lilacs

Lately lilacs lilt

as they float

to a world above my head, 

leaving laughter

behind their path. 

And I, an ever-seeking Fool,

reached out to grasp them

on their flight 

from this world

to the next. 

They will not follow me, though. 

They follow You,

on that journey,

beyond and between,

the radiance of your leaving

and the beauty of your 

back, 

turned,

the past no longer

in sight, only the light

of a spiraling path

into the sky.

I cannot say I fault you, 

though your leaving makes the

world tremble,

heart ache,

trees wither,

grass brown,

breath

stop.

Yet I reach,

and reach

and reach

never grasping

anything at all. 

Tell me: 

Where do I put this love,

now that You are gone?

And how do I stop

the digging

of Loss

after loss

after loss?

What is it that made your heart

like lilacs lazily lilting

toward heaven up above?

Do we ever

stop the reaching 

and hold each other’s

love?

Is it only when we collapse,

exhausted from our digging

and reaching

and trembling

that this present Sun rains down

and washes away

what we ought not hold?

Only then do I remember

the love you gave me

long ago.

That love, like lilacs,

lilts

and holds the Sun above.