During His Service — Thoughts On My Neighbor’s Passing: Revolutionary ConTEXTing Haiku

My neighbor (“the golfer”) passed away unexpectedly last weekend. At his funeral, during tributes from children and friends, many thoughts and feelings came up, which I turned into poetic texts to myself.

When a good man passes 11:04 a.m.
When a good man is/
Taken too early, it shakes/
We who aren’t ready.

Life Elevated Example 11:49 p.m.
When you see a life/
That is elevated, you/
Know you must improve.

My Neighbor’s Advice: 12:13 p.m.
“Prepare to stand in/
The presence of God.” That’s his/
advice from the grave.

Urgent Work 12:24 p.m.
For such a one to/
leave so early shows how the/
work is so urgent.
OR
For such a one to/
leave so soon shows how urgent/
the Lord’s work must be.

Kind Words Of Welcome 12:26 p.m.
Welcome back, brother”/
were the kindest feelings and/
words I ever heard.

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Getting Permission To Be Who I Am (RIP Robin #3) : Revolutionary Rhyming IMproVerse Haiku

His passing is hard/
because he somehow gave me*/
permission to be.

OR

*us

Overlapping Wakes: Revolutionary IMprov Haiku

Be not sad in her/
passing, but be glad that her/
wake overlapped yours.

OR

Don’t sorrow in her/
passing. Rise! Rise! knowing her/
wake overlapped yours.

Written to a friend who’d met and been touched by Dr. Maya Angelou, who was bemoaning her passing. My friend had written this about their meeting: http://bellavox.wordpress.com/2010/08/28/my-inspiration-started-long-ago-and-peaked-the-night-i-ate-dinner-with-maya-angelou/