By Junie Desil

I haven’t seen your beautiful white teeth -almost horse-like 

your pinkish gums    

hide your non-existent smile behind hands

sibilant “s”    lisp 

faint rattle of your congested chest

tell me you’re dying 

ignore your words   wasted frame

Our conversations:    a finality punctuated by the click 

of the phone   line

held together by an anxious coiled thread

next 

conversation -on death and dying

What is it like to prepare for 

the inevitable surprise

There is always a bag full of important documents

buried deep in a closet   here. just in case.

receipts for your pre-paid coffin,  burial plot,  insurance policy

just in case

Today’s conversation:

What remains unsaid:

the weight of sadness

holding things together   how to  

inherit joy where there is none

Find this poem and more, now in print, available at select locations in Vancouver.