“A song” by Julie Hanft

Our love story takes on a new form,

No longer bound by Earth’s time,

Still part of the same life and rhythm.

The memory of our touch remains our constant companion,

Playing in the quiet chambers of our hearts.

Grief is not my monster, it is part of our continued love story.

The essence of you is still alive, you live alongside me.

There is a quiet hand of yours, where you slip your

Unseen hand inside mine.

You will never be truly gone.

Grief is not my monster.

You talk to me and it’s not imaginary –

It is real – it is love.

I’m not moving on after loss, but I’m moving with you.

You sit across from me in your chair, your laughter is heard

Throughout this house.

I must remember that grief came to me,

Because love came first.

I still live with you, I built this room for my heart,

It’s a wound that sometimes hurts so badly.

But there is no other place I’d rather be,

Then here with you.

Grief is not my monster.

Through the struggle, I honor all the steps we’ve taken.

Today your body has been spread across the ocean,

For me to always see, and you’re free.

That together was our peace to always be.

This grief I feel is just your shadow.

Every day I look around and I see you everywhere.

It’s true you said you would never leave me alone.

For your loss has rearranged my world.

Together, we will travel in our dreams,

As I ride on your wings.

I will never lose the pain, for it is mine to keep.

You loved that this is a poet’s house,

And with your death, I whisper these words,

I love you, with every breath.

Grief is not my monster.

Julie Hanft is a best-selling author and poet who lives in Birch Bay. She dedicated this poem to her late husband, Eric.