AS I LAY DYING

As I Lay Dying On A Warm Summer’s Day

Waiting in the car wash line,
Receipt in hand to claim his car,
Michael watched attendants wipe
The hood, the doors, and windshield,
As I lay dying on a warm, summer’s day.

Penny pushed her shopping cart
Past frozen foods and dairy,
Took a cake mix on impulse,
Topped her cart with orange juice,
As I, with taste buds nearly gone, lay dying.

John watched eager faces chant,
“Pledge-allegiance-to-the-flag-
‘nited-States-of-‘merica andto-the- ‘public-for-which-it-stands . . .”
As I, with pain well masked, lay dying.

Separating darks from whites,
Fresh’ning clothes with bright’ners,
Making sure each load was full,
Jane dialed the heat to gentle,
As I lay dying on a warm, summer’s day

Gary laid the floor plan out
and made the Great Room greater,
planned palatial entryways,
chose tile with matching colors,
While I lament my family’s pain and sorrow.

From the scrapbook of my life
Come mem’ries’ consolations.
My life slowly disappears
Like sand thru children’s fingers,
As I lay humming, “Jesus doeth all things well.”

Shielded by my patchwork quilt,
my heart clings to hope and life,
in a war no one can win.
My will concedes the battle,
As I lie dying on a warm, summer’s day