Marking the Calendar

Every year I do the same – The calendar gets marked With birthdays and important dates To help my brain get sparked. I sometimes add occasions For new friends or someone’s birth, As sending cards is what I do, For all that it is worth. Yet this year there are certain dates, Where names I’ve always penned, That will be blank because I’ve lost A relative and friend. The August 1st box used to be Where Marilyn I’d write, But now she’s buried six feet down, Which never will feel right. The need to write Aunt Helen’s name, November 12th, did end, For age lay claim and that’s a card That I’ll no longer send. That’s just the way it goes, I guess, But now it’s got me thinking That every year I should expect My list to keep on shrinking.