Today ran the gamut of life for me. A beautiful, sunny fall day,

temperature just right, 

clear skies and a gentle breeze.
Finishing touches to a new enterprise, exciting and nerve wracking at the same time. 

Will it do well? Or will it be something to regret down the road? 

I’m choosing to be positive and look at all the good, but the niggling thoughts won’t quite go away.

The phone call we waited for all summer,
Heartbreaking and final, 

grief the only possible response. 

Memories of better times, 

thinking of the sorrow of loved ones 

helplessly, 

impotently.

Followed by the peculiar carefree sight of my children playing with abandon in a rural park to finish it all off.
Emotions swirled together in a complicated mix of sweetness and despair,  

salty tears 

on a peanut butter jam sandwich 

Unable to separate the two sides of the coin, 

I realize life that has confronted me today, 
with all its glorious complexity.

Loss, 
new beginnings, 

laughter and tears. 

I smile up at the Great beyond, 

moisture in my eyes. 

I say my goodbyes from far away,
As the sun sets in a tangerine sky