In Memory
We can't know why the lily has so brief a time to bloom
in the warmth of sunlight's kiss upon its face.
Before it folds its fragrance in and bids the world good-night to rest
its beauty in a gentler place.
But we can know that nothing that is loved is ever lost,
and no one who has ever touched a heart can really pass away because
some beauty lingers on in each memory of which they've been a part.
(Ellen Brenneman)
