I wrote the following today, in memory of the children of two friends of mine who lost children in the last year. It is my prayer that these are the last times I know someone who loses a child. I desperately need some distance from this kind of aching grief that seems so like an empty endless abyss. Friends who walk the edge of this chasm with every breath, I honor you as I pray to never fully comprehend what that kind of loss is like.

Samhain Mothers’ Day

Too many times so close to birth
Our babes are returned to Mother Earth
Taken by air not yet ready to breathe
Or fire that burns beyond need
Our eyes become wells, bottomless and wet
Dear Goddess please have you had enough yet?
All of this we human mothers bear
Yet again with heavy hearts our love we swear
Lady, grant us mercy and reprieve
Time and distance before again we grieve
For those too small taken too soon
Whose loss blanches us pale as the moon

Blessings and peace upon all who mourn, particularly for those lost much too soon. My heart aches with yours.