She Was Beautiful

When I am gone,

carve,

"She saw beauty everywhere she looked"

on my headstone.

Tell them how I used to sing aloud

my favorite songs

off key,

and dance in the living room,

recklessly abandoned,

with my children.

Tell them of how I learned

to love myself as much as others,

to make mountains into molehills

simply by holding doors open

for strangers.

Tell them how I built brick fences

from mud flung at me

and carved facets into

every broken piece

of myself

so my heart would refract

prismatic

iridescent

light

into the dark which always comes.

Tell them how I took

life's freely given lemons

and taught myself to make

the best

lemon drop martinis.

Tell them how I set

a steadfast example to my children

to chase dreams wildly

and that empathy is a super power.

When I am gone,

carve,

"She saw beauty everywhere she looked"

on my headstone

"and she was

beautiful"