My Sorrow Poem by Bryan Riley

I buried it there, in the soft sand
by the front stairway. The sugar ants
should have been angry, but they
didn't seem to mind. The digging
was the hardest part, but it wasn't
so difficult that it couldn't be
managed with a little bit of industry.

And once it was well-placed, I
pushed it down with my thumb, the
way a giant might push down a
mountain to create a fertile valley-
and then I covered it up, and the earth
above and around it looked much the
same as it had before, except a little
darker than its immediate surroundings.

I wondered, as I looked upon its
resting place, if it would take root and
grow, filling my front walk, and eventually
my life, with its towering shadow. But no-
gone is gone, and buried is forever. Maybe
it will break down and change, giving
sustenance to other creatures, which in
turn will change and grow into things of
incomprehensible beauty. That is my hope-
that this thing I have buried will bring some
good back into the world- this thing I have
put aside- this thing I no longer need-
my sorrow.