Eleanor Ruth Wagner
1941-2021

Sept 23, 2021
I think the weather mourned you too.
It had to save the feelings, just like me, for it was too soon.
To let them all come spilling out was something I couldn’t bear.
So I stay in math class, sitting quietly, silently, in my chair.
To push those letters out my brain, out the window I will stare.
Waiting for the sun to sink so I could finally care.
The wind whipped my windows and lightning pierced the air.
Rain shattered on my body but no pain could compare
To the one I felt inside my mind,
because I knew she wasn’t there.
She would be absent from her chair.
Not in the garden, nurturing it when the plants were bare.
Away from the airport where she would arrive on the planes
to see us and hug us, always with love and stories to share.
Like how she went to Iceland, and almost got lost at sea.
She marched with people screaming for freedom and liberty.
And most importantly,
She cared for all in need.
Bringing flowers and love to people who sat shaking and crying,
Just like me.
But I don’t have her to visit while I shed my tears.
She has departed, having spent all of her years
On this gorgeous planet she fought so hard to protect.
I will continue her legacy, and I will save what is left.
And I will remember her kindness,
As the thunder screams in my ear.
I will remember the things she did
When she was still here.