For My Gran (Vovo Lucia) Poem by chantelle ribeiro

Once upon a time
A beautiful woman
travelling over many seas
exotic and mysterious
strong and willful
came to stay in a land far away
She lived a full life
Passionate and determined
she made her way
became a mother
a grandmother
a matriarch
but still the sea beckoned
and back she went
to Portugal
the land of her birth
her roots
She had lost plenty
her husband, her son
and everyone said
her new life's begun
and in the Winter of her fears
a lifetime of over ninety years
she could not stop the tears
She fell silent on a Summer's day
Over the seas and far away
to another world
a heavenly place
where once again she would smile
the smile of a young woman
in the arms of the angels
who would greet her
at the pearly gates
her husband, her son
everyone
Her last breath a gentle sigh
and on her mouth she wore a smile