In The Obituary Poem by Win Gray

In the obituary
I saw death
For those who have passed on before me
Without successors for a name that has died
No generations to come
To breathe life into a name that has reached its final destination

In the obituary
I saw no picture
For some who have gone on before me
No families left behind to mourn their passing
And tell stories of an unwritten memoir
To generations to come

In the obituary
I saw my own life flash before me
Of a life lived alone filled with fear of dying
No still memories captured by flash
Preserved by albums
Only reminder of the master of death

In the obituary
I saw life
Of how it should be lived, full of love and laughter
So when death arrives,
There will not only be a cross showing only burdens carried
In an unforgiving, sad, lonely world

In the obituary
I finally realized that death doesn’t scare me
For when I die, there will be a picture of me smiling
And names of those I’m survived by
I know my life will not end in the obituary
But my name and my stories will be alive for generations to come.