graves | The Bard on the Hill

Posts Tagged ‘graves’

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The graves of
A president and
Lady Bird.

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The photo is mine, of the graves of LBJ and Lady Bird in the Johnson Cemetery
between Fredericksburg and Johnson City in Texas.

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* The haiku I write are lines of 3-5-3 syllables instead of 5-7-5.

See Haiku article here for explanation, if needed: https://thebardonthehill.wordpress.com/2011/08/08/haiku/
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A blue wave
Of Union soldiers
At the gray.

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Sides engage;
The fighting rages –
Red carpet.

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Then, the graves
Both Union, Rebel
Flower strewn.

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* The haiku I write are lines of 3-5-3 syllables instead of 5-7-5.

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The Latter Date

A mourner walks among the stones
That mark where loved ones lie –
At least their bodies – empty shells
They no more occupy.

He makes occas’nal pilgrimage
To this quiet meeting place,
Where only wind dares make a sound,
As leaves blow o’er its face.

He stands; he stares; he stoops beside
The plot, and there he lays
Small token of lamenting love,
Heart-broken death bouquets.

He gazes on the lettering,
Life written as a dash,
And rues the latter date he sees;
Upon his heart a gash.

His hands reach down to touch the stone,
Words that are written there;
His fingers softly trace the name,
As if a cheek that’s fair.

He stands at last, surveys the scene;
Looks down once more and sighs;
He toes the dirt; kicks, wistful, twice –
There’s nothing but goodbyes,

What draws him here where nothing dwells
What links him to this place?
The dash is in his memory
And in the grave – the trace.

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