To Depart on Such a Day

Why does death evoke a deeper sadness

On Halloween or Dia de los Muertos

Or All Saints Day or All Souls Day?

We gather to honor the ancestors

of birth and blood, of choice, and love on these days…

Family, friends, wise teachers who have left this life.

A sweet remembrance each year

Of lives well lived.  Of love felt, tender and true.

We seek wisdom for our journey,

comfort in knowing and being known.

To depart on such a day

Feels profoundly sorrowful

yet inexplicably sacred.

We honor those who have crossed the veil

At this time of year

with flowers, photos, candles, favorite foods,

touchstones of life help us remember them in death.

These are raw, holy…wholly sacred days in which

We embody vulnerability mixed with fond memories

As we reach across the veil,

hoping our loved ones reach back

To grasp our hand if even for a moment.

But, what about those

who depart amid this time

When the veil is oh so thin?

We want to reach

through the veil to pull them back

Into this world but we cannot.

Grief reaches the core of our being…

A sucker punch from the universe.

This day…

These days will never be the same.

for Carla 11-2-22