Birthday Worries

The first special occasion is the worst they all say
Dealing with the emptiness is difficult after a loved one passes away
But chin up, stand proud, you know what your mother would say
Today is a day to celebrate, it’s your birthday

Today is a day to forget the everyday toils and strife
A day to celebrate all that is happy in life
So ease up and with tradition break
And fill your belly full of (pan)cake

Crack open those gifts and put your party hat on
Because before you know it the day will be gone
And of course don’t ever neglect
To take the time out to think and reflect

And if you should find yourself in a bout of sadness
Know that throughout all this madness
You will always find you have those you can lean on
Your loved ones will be there until the sadness is gone

© Jared Denstad

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Let me give a little background to this poem. Last year, my brother’s wife lost her mother. I wrote a poem for her which you can read here. Her mother passed very closely to her birthday. When I sent her a birthday card last year, this poem was included with it. This is also why the second stanza mentions pancakes. It is being published at her request.

While this was originally written for a specific person, It could fit basically anyone that has lost a parent close to their birthday, or any special occasion. The loved ones we lose are always with us, even if only in spirit.

And finally, regarding a unrelated topic, I would like to mention that my output is likely to slow a bit in the coming weeks. I have up til now been publishing a poem every Monday and Thursday. This is because I had a backlog of unpublished works to pull from. With this poem’s publication, all of my older works (to my knowledge) have been posted to my account. As a result, there may be gaps in my publication schedule if I cannot come up with a poem that is worthy of being posted that day.

I will see you all next time.