NEVER GONE

Photo by Jennifer Mandell © 2012  

I appreciate my mind and the things it can do,

the enduring sense of optimism I inherited from you,

the strings on my guitar and the notes they can play,

the little joys I find in each passing day.

I appreciate the little things that make me smile,

and anything that can engross me for a while,

the colorful brilliance of the late evening sky,

the softness of the grass in the field where I lie.

The sound of laughter and the shedding of tears,

friendships that have endured throughout the years,

the promises of spring and the smells of fall,

the way that I still remember it all.

I appreciate that life is here and then it's gone,

that the truths are things we have known all along,

that the real measure of a life well-lived

lies in a person's capacity to give.

It matters not the material things left behind,

but how often you cross another person's mind,

are others inspired by the life that you've led,

do you motivate them to get out of bed.

To dust themselves off and try yet again,

to be there for others that they call "friend",

to be more than they thought they could be,

you were one of those people for me.

Not here anymore, but not really gone,

because my memories of you still live on.

© 2012  Jennifer Mandell.  All rights reserved.