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Poetry & the Arts
2012
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The World Just Got Darker
Submitted: Sep 11, 2012
By Timo Antero Onjukka
The world just got darker, I must out loud cry;‘twas but three decades when first you sailed by.
No one called you brother, yet truer no doubt
has any friend mine ever been so stout.
Lame words like mine must need suffice;
I've no other way to lament your demise.
Lived strong and well, stayed true to His word,
I've lost my best friend, oh tears have you heard?
River of Time, over rocks, rapids and falls,
rise great hopes that meet beyond these steep walls.
So we pray, true friend, husband and dad;
Unnumbered lone sailor, your years no more add.
Raise high our glass and evermore boast,
though all must thus pass, we miss you the most.
Sail on brave friend, tall mast at the high,
you left a broad wake, clear 'cross even sky.
The world just grew colder; in darkness I ask why.
Yet find we beacons that rose bright in your eye.
Set sail to strong wind and heaven your guide,
We'll all follow 'cross this unmeasured divide.
Beyond horizons that beckon all to embark
we shall remember you left an honest mark.
In that far harbor, rest too long o'erdue,
Rest there dear friend, trust promises true.
Although it got darker when sadly I heard;
I'll not forget you shared His true Word.
When reach I that harbor, pray skies stay fair;
With His assured rest, no storms alarm there.
In heart and mind sailor, grasp rudder strong
Knowing forever, He'll never steer wrong.
Sail on, sails tight, and all battened a'right
Sail on, sail on, hope seeking true light.
Although it got darker for a moment or two,
Our anchors shall weigh when sun rises for you.
Although it got darker, the dark shall give way
To One who holds light and love in His sway.
©TimoAnteroOnjukka2008
Written as a personal memorial to a dear friend and fellow sailor
who sailed ahead 7 years ago, alone into the dark and cold. John, you are remembered.
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Poetry expresses with prose can never do.
Thank you, Elaine and Jan. Glad you enjoyed it; my dear friends widow burned my first handwritten copy in John's honor when she scattered his ashes at sea. I did not publish it until several years later.
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One thing on my "Bucket List" is to read more Shakespeare's plays. I have a book with all of them; also more short stories of well known writers. I am in a book club which meets weekly using world classics. A great way to encourage reading of the world's best literature, many which I would not have read without joining a club. We have read translations of French, Russian, Chilean, Japanese, and many others. The most memorable short stories I read when taking a graduate course in literature were Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness and one by Virginia Wolf. The funniest: Catch-22, a LOL and friendliest: Steinbeck's Travels with Charley.