“I see you everywhere,” I whisper to the cold grey slab of stone poking up from the uncaring earth.
“I see you perched at the foot of my bed singing soft and sweet, or reading to me in your low, quiet voice.”
I run my fingers across the stone.
“I see you patting the baby’s back as you lull her to sleep.”
I trace the engraved letters.
“I feel you hugging me tightly, as if I am all that matters in the entire world, enveloping me in your warmth, making me feel whole.”
A single tear rolls down my cheek.
“I hear your contagious laughter filling the house. The laugh that could even make Grandpa Frank crack a smile.”
I smile a little just thinking about it.
“I see your soft brown eyes every time I look in the mirror.”
I gently sit down in the dirt.
“I smell you cooking your special breakfast casserole every Sunday, humming while you work.”
I lean against the headstone.
“You had a way of making people feel important and loved. You had the ability to listen, really listen, to make the person talking to you feel like the only person in the room.”
I close my eyes.
“You’ll never have the chance see Emma walk, to tell her you love her to the moon and back.”
I stare at the gravestone.
“All she’ll ever know you as is a cold hard slab of engraved stone. A picture on the mantle. A memory, a whisper. What might have been, what should have been.”
My eyes burn.
“I love you Mom,” I whisper to the lifeless stone.
As I stand and turn to go I can almost smell her sweet perfume. A soft breeze whispers in my ear.
“I love you to the moon and back,” it seems to say.
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139,365 Literary Works • 672,540 Reviews
This is really beautiful, Ruby... I found myself fighting back tears.
Thanks
This was really beautiful. While reading I felt a pang in my heart. It really reveals the true feelings of a person who has lost his loved one. It's a job well done.
Thank you!
I thought this was beautiful. At first, I did know that there was a person speaking to a gravestone. I was thinking that perhaps it was a parent who lost their child until you mentioned baby Emma. Then I knew it was a mother who had died. So then I thought:
"Perhaps her husband?" Then the "I love you Mom" came up and the story clicked into place.
"Guess How Much I Love You" Was my favorite children's book as kid, and "I love you to the moon and back," is the most famous line. The only nitpick I have is that I think you should give the author credit for this.
Thank you for writing such a beautiful piece. I hope this makes it to the spotlight
Keep Writing!
-Gravity
Thanks, I didn't know what it was from. I'll definitely credit it.
mmkay!
This is a really lovely, poignant piece. Speaking from the perspective of someone who's lost a loved one, you've captured the anguish that comes along with it in passages like "All she’ll ever know you as is a cold hard slab of engraved stone. A picture on the mantle. A memory, a whisper. What might have been, what should have been." There really is a constant feeling of lost potential, in relationship and memories that should have been made, which you've related in heartwrenching detail.
If I was to point out something that could be better, it would be this line: "I feel you hugging me tightly, as if I am all that matters in the entire world, enveloping me in your warmth, making me feel whole." This drags on just a bit too long, and while it's pretty, it doesn't feel true to the character of someone who's reminiscing at a gravestone. Just remove some of the more lengthy description and you should be fine.
Again, this is a really great piece of writing and you should be proud of it!
thanks
You're very welcome! I hope I was able to help.
I understand this, I recently lost my beautiful Aunt. Losing someone is hard, and I know what its like. I like how you described her positive qualities. When we lose someone, we think of the good they left us. Think of all the times you spent with them! I love the quote. I love you to the moon and back. Love is forever, even if you cannot be with someone, their love is still there.
Happy Writing!!
Writing can be used to express pain, I find it very helpful. Your a very good writer. I hope your doing alright, keep writing!
Thanks, and I'm sorry about your aunt.
Your welcome! And thanks