My Papa

Five years have passed.
Has it been that long?
I know 'tis true,
Yet it still feels wrong.

It seems like yesterday,
In my mind's eye.
That you could live forever,
That you'd never die.

Yet here we are,
And there we've been.
I still believe, someday,
We shall see you again.

Yet I'll never forget that day,
July second, two thousand four.
Grandma was coming out,
Even before we reached the door.

"The hospital called,
There's something wrong.
We need to get there.
We can't take too long."

When we arrived,
Nobody spoke.
My aunt shook her head,
And my mother just broke.

My cousin was smoking,
I sat by her side,
Though her cheeks were tear stained,
I never cried.

I broke down later,
When all was done.
I cried bitter tears,
After the setting sun.

Yet still I believe,
He isn't truly gone.
For in the heart of his family,
He'll forever live on.

In the rows of the garden,
And the pottering shed.
We'll forever remember,
The life that he led.

We can never blame God,
For we had Papa so long,
He went to join Jesus,
He is where he belongs.

And he's still here with us,
In all that we do.
In life's every season,
Every shade, every hue.