POETRY 2024: An old man stands at the cemetery by Scott Harrison

An old man stands at the cemetery by Scott HarrisonAn old man stands in the cemetery with his handful of forget-me-nots.An only son, he is here in this field with all his brothers.He keeps company with his old friend who is always much younger than him.He feels tired, weary, but stands up straight and smiles for his pal. There is a busy street of stores to the north.A few kids play on the basketball court in the twilight to the east.Mothers push baby carriages just south of the hundreds of white stones.And west is where the red sun slowly drops as everyone knew it would. The old man hears nothing as if a large glass dome has descended on this place.Soon he is aware of the sound of his own heart as it beats out its eternal rhythm.He knows this is the only conversation they can have.It is a good one, rich with the subtleties of their long relationship. As he bends down to place his flowers next to his friend’s stone,A bird sings them both a sweet little song, and looks down from her branch.It takes him a minute to lift himself back up, and in that slowed-down time,His friend, in just a few heart beats, says good-bye and be well.Some folks are looking for bargains at the bed stores on this Memorial Day.Others are celebrating on this first day of a long-earned summer.One old man is standing alone among his brothers, not forgetting.To the east, a kid on the court has stopped playing and watches the still man.Our theme song is courtesy of singer-songwriter Brittney Wagner. Stream her record Better off Dead here. Support the showThank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chief, at [email protected] Hickman, multimedia producer, at [email protected] Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected] inquiries: [email protected] to our website for all of the latest news. Subscribe to The Mountain-Ear in print and online.Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.Find us on Facebook @mtnear and Instagram @mtn.earListen and watch on YouTube today.Share this podcast by scrolling to the bottom of our website home page or by heading to our main hub on Buzzsprout.Thank you for listening!