J P Marmaro Poet Sonnet

When I Am Gone

When I am gone, and from this world have flown,
I would admonish you to not forget
That I have loved and cherished you, my own,
And even after death shall love you yet.

But I’ve no wish to burden you with pain—
Not for one month, one day, one second’s time—
Insisting you remember would be vain, 
And causing you such grief, a selfish crime.

While memory can help one to endure,
Distressing recollection can be worse;
Remembering, in some, effects a cure--
In others it’s essentially a curse. 

Thus knowing this, my love, I won’t resent
Forgetting me, so long as you’re content. 


 October 2, 2019

Please note: though the second line includes what appears to be that old grammatical bugbear, a split infinitive, I could argue that the word "not" is not a modifier, but part of a compound verb "to not forget", ie. to remember; also, its position makes it not only a stressed syllable but also much more emphatic. 

♡Like0

Share Poem

---

Post Comments

Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.

Please Login to post a comment