Be Brave Poem by Jim Yerman

She received a lot of advice after her Grandpa died
It seemed to come in waves…
They said Grandpa was in a better place…They told her to be brave.

Be brave for your grandpa they said…he wouldn't want you to be sad…
Be brave for your bothers and sisters…be brave for your mom and dad

She remembers being somewhat confused from all the advice they gave
She was just a young girl…What did she know about brave?

She ran to her Dad and asked, "Dad! What's the correct way to behave?
When we go to Grandpa's funeral…What do they mean…be brave? "

"People mean well when they say be brave." Dad said,
"But you are kind and loving and smart,
I think the best advice on how to be brave is to listen to your heart."

"What is your heart telling you? " he asked.
Then she looked up at her dad
"My heart is saying it's broken…It's telling me I'm sad."

"It's telling me I miss him …It wants to know why he died."
"It's telling me it hurts…It's telling me to cry".

Dad nodded saying…"Grandpa made us smile so many time over the years.
We never think how one day those smiles will be the reason for our tears."

"Don't give a second thought to what people say or think today, " he said,
"or any time you say goodbye".
"Be brave enough to be yourself…Be brave enough to cry".

She related this conversation word for word to her daughter
about what it means to be brave
while happy memories made them cry
As they stood at Grandpa's grave.