Grief is Like a River

by Cynthia G. Kelley

My grief is like a river-
I have to let it flow,
But I myself determine
Just where the banks will go.

Some days the current takes me
In waves of guilt and pain,
But there are always quiet pools
Where I can rest again.

I crash on rocks of anger-
My faith seems faith indeed,
But there are other swimmers
Who know that what I need

Are loving hands to hold me
When the waters are too swift,
and someone kind to listen
When I just seem to drift.

Grief's river is a process
Of relinquishing the past.
By swimming in Hope's channels
I'll reach the shore at last.