My Passion, my love

I love poetry! I worship the written word. Especially I am filled with adoration when I gaze upon inked paper with a piece of someone's soul spilt. It is the moment that life is breathed into this medium to represent a light or darkness inside another human being for all of us to view, to admire, to learn from. I have been writing since I was 11 years old. My first poem came on the heels of a fight my parents were having. I could hear them screaming and I was terrified for the changes I thought that might result. I feared for them. I sat by that North Carolina window and stood looking out at the fields and began to write...in my head. The words poured forth and I searched for something, not knowing what....I was propelled to write. Eight simple lines flew from my fingers, emptying my heart, erasing my fears, filling my mind with hope. Maybe it was God that day but I immediately felt a sense of relief, as if I knew it was all going to be okay. It was that day that I felt closer to God, ie myself then I ever had before.

Since then I have read many poems and literature of all kinds. I have favorite poets of yore. I have even met friends and family that write. They all touch me in one way another as the written word never fails to do. That being said this is the only poem that I have ever read and every time I read it, I am filled with an overwhelming sense of emotion, bittersweet happiness and tears that are uncontrollable. It is a shame I don't have more readers/followers/friends here so that more may read this work of art.

Warning: Kleenex is needed and a longing for a loved one to hold will ensue.

I Do
by Rudy Herrera

 

There she lay in the hospital bed;

a woman past 90, the woman I wed
 

We met in the summer, in the middle of June

just wrapping up lunch on a cool afternoon
 

I was walking with coffee that I had just bought

from this quaint little vendor, who had just brewed a pot

Heading back into work, while crossing the street

I looked up ahead… my heart skipped a beat!

There waiting tables in a sidewalk cafe,

stood a beautiful angel with some cups on a tray

I shuffled in closer, my heart in my throat

and standing before her, my chance seemed remote

I swallowed my fears and held my head high

I mustered some courage and let out a sigh

"Can I help you?", she asked, her voice very soothing,

but I suddenly froze... my mouth wasn't moving!

With a full cup in hand, I panicked and mumbled

an order for coffee that came out all jumbled

She glanced at my cup with one eyebrow bent

and perceptively smiled at my hidden intent
 

I tried to explain, with an abrupt lack of charm,

and coming up short, I spilled on my arm

We both had a laugh and both took a chance

we both fell in love at a Thanksgiving dance
 

I proposed soon there after, her answer was yes

I'll never forget her in that gorgeous white dress

She proudly repeated the priest's words aloud,

"til death do us part", she solemnly vowed
 

"Repeat after me", the priest nodded his head...

"I wrote my own vows", I smiled and said

I squeezed her hands tightly and drowned in her eyes

I took a deep breath and disclosed my surprise
 

"In life and in death, I belong to you...

my heart, my soul, my life, I do."

Her eyes watered up, her face full of joy

and the following year, we were blessed with a boy
 

I worked extra shifts, early on in our life

but never thought twice, for my baby and wife

With love in our home we raised our son right

and sometimes, though rare, we'd bicker and fight

 

And still every morning, to start out my day

I'd made it a point to kiss her and say,

"In life and in death, I belong to you...

my heart, my soul, my life, I do."
 

Our son grew up into a good, strong, young lad

with a compassionate mother and a proud dear ol' dad

I remember the day of the infamous war...

the reports of the bloodshed, violence and gore

Our boy so distracted, he lived in deep thought

his conscience so torn, his heart so distraught

Determined one day, our boy, he enlisted

No more a boy, our young man persisted
 

"I cannot sit idly by anymore"

He flew out that week to help in the war

Though she understood, his mother, she cried

And while forcing a smile, a part of her died
 

I myself shed a couple of tears,

some were of pride, and the others... my fears

He wrote every day, that whole month of June;

He missed us all so... he'd be coming home soon
 

The final letter came on the 4^th of July,

"With regret to inform us" our pride n' joy died

A piece of us gone, we mourned every year

from that year on after, the 4^th brought a tear
 

On the strength of our love, we trudged on with life

as hard as it seemed for me and my wife

Time flew by quicker with each passing day

nonetheless every morning I'd remember to say

"In life and in death, I belong to you...

my heart, my soul, my life, I do."

And now she lay in the hospital bed,

a woman past 90, the woman I wed
 

I prayed to the Lord to take me instead

I begged and I pleaded for the life in that bed

One morning I felt a soft hand on my cheek

as I awoke to a voice, frail and meek
 

"In life and in death, I belong to you...

my heart, my soul, my life, I do."

My radiant angel sat up in her bed

"good morning my dear", she smiled and said.
 ....

I thanked the "All Mighty" with a sniffle and wheeze,

as I broke down in tears and fell to my knees

Now tonight, in our home, at the end of the day,

I climb into bed... I kiss her and say,
 

"In life and in death, I belong to you...

my heart, my soul, my life, I do."

In the morning she awoke, her tears like a river,

as the man of her dreams lie dead right beside her
 

He now lays at rest along side their son,

the man that she wed, still second to none

Alone in a graveyard, with tears in her eyes,

she smiles and remembers, then proudly she sighs,
 

"In life and in death, I belong to you...

my heart, my soul, my life, I do."

Thank you Rudy.