Heaven

No one tells you how hard dying can be:

weeks and months and years sometimes

of silence, of separation, of being close,

but still so far away. 

Grasping the inevitable, yet,

maintaining positivity in

that long goodbye.

And no one tells you how quickly death can come,

One moment here, another gone

so fast, no warning, just missing

that laugh, that response,

that casual hug,

the inconceivable goodbye

that is forever.

Remember, however, that

on the other side, there is a heaven:

a place of joyous discovery.

Remember the quarter you found

in the parking lot when you were 6?

Heaven's a lot like that.

Unexpected surprises.

Your grandma, again bearing cookies,

the teachers you loved once, the aunts and uncles,

gone for years, but loving you still.

Think of your dog, buried long ago,

leaping again into your arms: 

Heaven's a lot like that.

Unqualified love.

The joy of seizing opportunities you'd missed along the way—

all the happy endings you’d imagined

for yourself, come to heavenly fruition,

a veritable Hallmark movie version

of a less-than-Hallmark life.

Heaven's a lot like that.

Unimaginable rewards.

No one told you how hard it would be;

today and all the grinding yesterdays

of pain, frustration, and tears.

But there is a heaven ahead:

a joyous place, where all the lost

are magically found again:

Happy reunions.

Heaven's a lot like that.