August 2022

New Work Summer 22- Transferred from the home page-

Edna at the Pearly Gates

The morning after my Birthday

Sister called me and announced

Well- it’s that phone call-

Mom’s gone

They told me it was around 10:30

Calmly I replied well-

Terrible now everything that could have

Happened to Edna has happened

My Sister Boni told me that her and my

Brother -in-law Kevin were leaving to the rest home

To identify the body to start the final arrangements

A couple of hours later I was sent a text from her that reading-

She was told by the Nurses’ Aid that after that initial phone

Call that Edna started breathing again for a while- but

Finally checked out for good around noon.

I considered just how to understand that earthly pause

Of about an hour and a half-

Edna had been a devout Catholic

So Limbo perhaps-

Certainly her last year on earth was pure purgatory

Bedridden- semi conscious with every indignity of

The flesh checked off the flesh list.

So- Where was Edna ?

This is what I think happened-

When she heaved that last sigh- not out- but in

As the astral body soul started its journey

Into the tunnel toward the light of Infinity-

Clearly Edna didn’t dig this and somehow

Descended back into her ancient flesh shell-

She hid there until they sent her father Poppa

Joe Turner down to grab her hand and pull

Her back up- this time for real saying-

Edna ! Get that little tail of yours over here-

Pronto ! Everybody is waiting on you

And supper is ready ! 

6/8/22- 7/4/22 V. Quatroche