I had the privilege of reading this poem of mine at my father's burial at the national cemetery in Eagle Point, Oregon, on February 15, 2007. My great novelist father passed on January 14, 2007. But his spirit forever resides in me. This poem too I dedicate to him and to the inimitable man and loving father he was always to me.

EVERY TIME WE SAY GOODBYE

Oh I loved you every morning and until the next day,
And never thought I’d ever wake up alone with the dawn.
For love is a blessing that seemed blessed to forever stay,
Until one morning I woke to find you forever gone.

For when our hearts do awake into their spiritual birth
We pray to keep love and never be left broken hearted.
And though our time is so brief and unsure upon this earth,
We pray our hearts will never become dearly departed!

Still, if only we could know how life and morning might go
And the desolation the next day can bring forever,
We might find every parting a form of deathless sorrow
To make us treasure every moment we are together.

Ah...if only we knew how short and fragile hope can be
And how suddenly morning can end and a life can die!
We would cherish the present and beg the future to see
Why we should be so careful every time we say goodbye.