passing through

passing through
silent white headstones
urge me on

* * * * *

Sister #3
who showed me
how to live and how to die

My Colleague
who told his family story
with tears streaming down his face

My Piano Teacher
who knew me inside out
and told me I needed a boyfriend

My Mother
who began to know me
inside out and longed to know more

My Brother-in-Law
who never told anything
but the full blunt-naked truth about life

My Theology Professor
who encouraged me to speak in
my distinct voice without shame or apology

My Quaker Employer
who thanked me in writing for
relational gifts I didn’t know I possessed

Members of a Great Cloud of Witnesses
gone in body from this earth
present in my spirit

Haiku written 18 August 2012

© Elouise Renich Fraser, 4 March 2014