deepundergroundpoetry.com
The Guiding Light
He went for his daily walk like he did every morning around 9:00 am
Today was Xmas
The weather was overcast with some light flurries
His wife was home and they will be spending Xmas with her parents today
His mother died 10 years ago
He hasn't spoken to his father since the time of her passing
They haven't seen eye to eye for many years prior, but once she died, they stopped talking
His mother was a caring, full of life individual that was taken to early
He wasn't the religious type
He would never go and visit her in the cemetery, which was only about a mile away
He made sure on his daily walks, he avoided the cemetery at all costs
Today though was different
Something urged him to walk through the graveyard
As he continued on and began to enter, he noticed in the far end of the cemetery, a beam of light was shining down
Almost like a single colored rainbow
It looked as though it was coming from the direction where his mother was buried
Intrigued, he began walking the path where this light was coming from
As he neared the light, the light was becoming brighter
Shining through the thickened clouds
He noticed a single car parked on the side
He didn't recognize the car
As he approached closer to the light, he realized the light was shining down onto his mother's plot
He also saw an old, frail looking man kneeling down near his mothers gravestone
It was his father
His father looked very ill & tired
As he approached, his father looked over his shoulder and saw his son
He just nodded and said "Merry Xmas"
His son said "Merry Xmas" back to him
His father struggled to get back to his feet
His son helped him up
His father said, "What made you come here after all these years"
His son said, "I had this sudden urge to come here and visit mom"
"Plus, This bright beam of light I noticed in the distance"
His father said, "What light. I don't see anything"
His father didn't see the light but his son did
The light dissipated once he arrived at his moms plot
He asked how his father was doing, "With hesitation, his father told him that he was dying"
He went on that he has an incurable sickness
The doctors are giving him one month to live
His father told his son that he always loved him very much
His son, told him that he regrets wasting all these years being bitter and distant from him and the family
He began realizing that maybe his mother sent the beam of light down to get his sons attention, knowing that his father was here
As they began warming up to each other, his son helped his father kneel down again and pray to the woman they both loved and admired very much
Mom, dad & son were spending their 1st Xmas together since her passing
As they looked at one another, they began to tear up
They told one another how much they meant to each other
Later that day, his father was invited to his sons home
He had a wonderful time
Pictures and memories were made that day
Everyone was happy, joyous and at peace
After Xmas, he planned on visiting his dad at his place before New Years
He had the chance but something came up
His father was saddened, but understood
They spoke on the phone one more time, telling one another that they loved each other very much
His father died three day later on New Years Day
He was buried next to his wife
He began realizing that maybe his mother sent the beam of light down that Xmas day to get his sons attention, knowing that his father was here and was going to die.
Today was Xmas
The weather was overcast with some light flurries
His wife was home and they will be spending Xmas with her parents today
His mother died 10 years ago
He hasn't spoken to his father since the time of her passing
They haven't seen eye to eye for many years prior, but once she died, they stopped talking
His mother was a caring, full of life individual that was taken to early
He wasn't the religious type
He would never go and visit her in the cemetery, which was only about a mile away
He made sure on his daily walks, he avoided the cemetery at all costs
Today though was different
Something urged him to walk through the graveyard
As he continued on and began to enter, he noticed in the far end of the cemetery, a beam of light was shining down
Almost like a single colored rainbow
It looked as though it was coming from the direction where his mother was buried
Intrigued, he began walking the path where this light was coming from
As he neared the light, the light was becoming brighter
Shining through the thickened clouds
He noticed a single car parked on the side
He didn't recognize the car
As he approached closer to the light, he realized the light was shining down onto his mother's plot
He also saw an old, frail looking man kneeling down near his mothers gravestone
It was his father
His father looked very ill & tired
As he approached, his father looked over his shoulder and saw his son
He just nodded and said "Merry Xmas"
His son said "Merry Xmas" back to him
His father struggled to get back to his feet
His son helped him up
His father said, "What made you come here after all these years"
His son said, "I had this sudden urge to come here and visit mom"
"Plus, This bright beam of light I noticed in the distance"
His father said, "What light. I don't see anything"
His father didn't see the light but his son did
The light dissipated once he arrived at his moms plot
He asked how his father was doing, "With hesitation, his father told him that he was dying"
He went on that he has an incurable sickness
The doctors are giving him one month to live
His father told his son that he always loved him very much
His son, told him that he regrets wasting all these years being bitter and distant from him and the family
He began realizing that maybe his mother sent the beam of light down to get his sons attention, knowing that his father was here
As they began warming up to each other, his son helped his father kneel down again and pray to the woman they both loved and admired very much
Mom, dad & son were spending their 1st Xmas together since her passing
As they looked at one another, they began to tear up
They told one another how much they meant to each other
Later that day, his father was invited to his sons home
He had a wonderful time
Pictures and memories were made that day
Everyone was happy, joyous and at peace
After Xmas, he planned on visiting his dad at his place before New Years
He had the chance but something came up
His father was saddened, but understood
They spoke on the phone one more time, telling one another that they loved each other very much
His father died three day later on New Years Day
He was buried next to his wife
He began realizing that maybe his mother sent the beam of light down that Xmas day to get his sons attention, knowing that his father was here and was going to die.
Published 25th Dec 2024
Author's Note
Notes...If you have a loved one that is still alive and you haven't spoken to them because of some argument or misunderstanding, be the bigger person and make a call to them.
Were here for a very very short time,
don't let time pass you and your loved ones by,
before you realize that person may have died
Regret takes over, that there was no final goodbye.
Were here for a very very short time,
don't let time pass you and your loved ones by,
before you realize that person may have died
Regret takes over, that there was no final goodbye.
All writing remains the property of the author. Don't use it for any purpose without their permission.
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comments 12
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The author encourages honest critique.
25th Dec 2024 12:41pm
And I love this poem. I hope nothing bad happens to anyone this Christmas! No negativity! Only positive! Always and forever xoxoxo
25th Dec 2024 4:03pm
Thanks ASD for the kind words and RL for this poem. Appreciated greatly.
25th Dec 2024 1:37pm
That was a very well told heart-warming & saddening tale.
I like that the relationship between father and son had some closure.
I like that the relationship between father and son had some closure.
25th Dec 2024 4:03pm
25th Dec 2024 3:24pm
25th Dec 2024 4:04pm
25th Dec 2024 10:41pm
I texted with my mother today. It was just to say Merry Christmas, but I did it.
Thanks for the post, Keith.
Thanks for the post, Keith.
26th Dec 2024 11:35am
26th Dec 2024 4:22am
Beautifully written, Keith. Into the list it belongs. Don't put off what you can do today, tomorrow is not guaranteed. Pulled at the old heartstrings, brother. Appreciate you.
Damian
Damian
26th Dec 2024 11:35am
I went for something a bit different since it was xmas. Thanks Damian for the RL.
26th Dec 2024 8:05pm
very touching & soulful write Keith.. with a touch of magical realism spun delicate in all the calling light and love .. with it’s magic of ever presence amidst utter darkness n deaths even .. wordless really .. xx
26th Dec 2024 8:08pm
