Love Poem: For Mom and Dad
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Written by: Brian Baumgarn

For Mom and Dad

And so, life's race faithfully run, you each passed the baton to us with
one soft, final breath. Your lives were established in the steadfast,
consistent use of time and energy. Faithful years of joyous love and

labor where you shined as the constant sun warming our lives; your
hands knit the sturdy fabric of our lives, clothing us against the cold;
each of your well chosen words assured us we could walk forward. And

those lives, trustworthy as a gathering dawn, constant as the phases of 
our mysterious moon, abiding as the passing seasons deftly layered
one upon another, have built hearth-fires for the empty,

arduous junctures in our own lives. We have been held safe and
secure for having known you. We remain--the blood of your blood,
strength of your strength, love of your love;

filled daily with gratitude for your having sustained us as we
grew, for supporting us during the journey, and for living
the way of prayer and grace in your aging and departing.

May we, the blood that remains, form durable vibrant
threads in the tapestry of family, granting bountiful
legacies of love as you and the eternal God entreat us.

                                         For Mom and Dad
                                         Free Verse in Tercets