Topic: A Slow Death
It’s hard to accept a slow death
You instinctively feel it
Though you try to deny it
The diagnosis is wrong
The charts are mixed up
The warning signs simply misinterpreted
You don’t want to talk about it
For fear that in itself will make it true
But you hear the whispers
And then the words of encouragement
There’s always hope
New treatments and methods on the horizon
Lots of time to find the miracle cure
We’ll plead with the creator
With faith anything is possible
In the beginning everyone stands tall
Your friends call more frequently
And then slowly they begin to tail off
Only the most inner circle is left
Despite new acquaintances along the way
They don’t really understand what it’s like
For they don’t feel the slow death
They don’t see the layers of the soul
Peeling off like onion skin
Bringing tears which you try to hide
With a brave façade that everything is normal
When every day that passes
No radical solutions come to light
And you realize that gnawing inside
Is growing stronger
Past promises slide further into the past
Still you cling to the few who remain
Committed to fight the honorable fight
Perhaps not ignore the inevitable
But rather face it head on
With dignity befitting what it once was
The slow death gives you time
To come to terms
To set priorities
For the time which remains
To pay tribute to all those
Who were an integral part
Of what once was
And will survive in our memories
Of The Next Big Writer
Before the slow death came
Take care. Vern
