Without so much as a sigh - Andrew Barham

Without so much as a sigh
My father dies
Exhausted
By the struggle
To stay alive
And the nurse turning him
Cries …

Death,
A dark presence
Lurking in the corners and shadows
Perched up there
Near the ceiling,
Waiting –
Pounces!
And it's all over.

He could see it
As he lay
Helpless
The terror in his eyes
Every time
He looked up there
Unable to speak –
To communicate;
The man I looked up to
The man I could always talk to
About anything
About everything;

Death
Is not so complete –
It leaves everything
Unanswered …

Andrew Barham