Loss is an essential part of the military kid experience. While loss and grief are part of the human experience in general, the kind of loss I have felt in my life has been different than what many might expect when they hear someone is grieving. Sometimes, I've found this kind of loss to be really hard to explain, or put into words. It's a strange kind of loss, because the people we lose aren't usually gone forever. We may still be able to see their faces when we are miles, even worlds apart when we haven't even spoken to them in months, or years.
I usually don't share my poetry but as I was reading through my old poem book, I found a poem of mine that I felt might reach someone here. No matter what kind of loss you have or may be experiencing right now, I hope you know, I see you. And I hear you.
people
they come and go
like morning mist
evaporating
into sweet summer
memories
i am used
to this feeling
that people
i once knew
will travel
on their own
finding their place
in the sky
leaving me behind
to bask
in their sweet
summer
sun
but oh how i wish
that the morning mist
would wait around
just a little while longer
in the sweet
summer
mornings
not just a memory
but the beautiful
evidence of growth
that lingers on my clothes
on the soles of my feet
calloused from travel
don't evaporate so fast
i whisper quietly
my tears
do not dry
as quickly
as the dewdrops
you've left on the ground
stay
just a little while longer
let me soak up
every last drop
let's be kids again
beautiful dewdrop
of mine
dance in the rain
with me
just a little while longer
before you disappear
into the sweet
summer
sun.