-- The Weight of Sorrow --

John Herlihy

The bearable weight of sorrow,

Sometimes heavy, sometimes light.

From yesterday thru tomorrow,

Shaded by the darkness of night.

The heaviness may not always linger,

Comes and goes as a breath of wind.

Be it heavy or light, a knowing finger,

Tracing memories no one can rescind.

Sometimes the sorrow feather-light,

Like a cloudy day that one can bear.

The clouds can sometimes feel right,

As a blessing that comes with prayer.

Sometimes the sorrow stone-heavy,

Slow descent into the pit of despair.

Flows as a river from a flooded levee,

A winter cloak in the summer to wear.

We oft eat, drink and sleep in sorrow

Life goes on even in the darkest hours

Waiting, watching, weeping till tomorrow

As we suffer thru its darksome powers

Sorrow’s arrival the weight of stone,

Sinking buried in the ground of soul.

Grief as in the grave of a buried bone,

Drawn into the depths of its black hole.

Sorrow’s departure lifted as a feather,

The years will pass by as it takes its leave.

Released finally from sorrow’s tight tether,

The unbounded heart need no longer grieve.

Sorrow steals the lightness of the heart,

Turning spring rains into winter frost.

Creating a heaviness unwilling to depart,

With harsh mood endured at great cost.

I tell my sorrows to stand with pride,

A testament to all that we must endure.

Whether heavy or light, in me they reside,

Giving voiceless grief words made pure.

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Copyright © John Herlihy

Saturday 1 October 2022