Les Deux Magots ‘Saying Goodbye’

Les Deux Magots poets and writers met on June 11 at the Hill Family Tasting Room. Poets captured the bittersweet nature of goodbyes with profound and memorable words.

Trish Hanley shared:

I said goodbye to my mother
My father
a marriage
lovers
cats
homes
countries
friends
my youth
I said goodbye to my son
I’m done with goodbye.

Betsy Roman asked:
Hello offers connection
a wink signals inclusion
Goodbyes lead to closure
But what do we do with
missing?

Patricia Reis wrote of her last moments with her dog:
My friend and companion stretched across my lap
takes his last breath.
I bow
pray him an easy passage into the next realm as my heart softens into
goodbye.   

L Rae Hyland shared a precious moment:
I took from my bag the ancient sacred oils
I anointed him
head, heart and hands
Once again I prayed for his healing
for light and love
one last time.

I, Marianne Lyon, created a goodbye verse as I watched a Maple outside my window:
Meritorious maple’s lavish flood of radiance slides through my window
she bleeds dancing flames
welcomes spirit of wind
a few leaves spiral
wave goodbye.

Geoff Leigh shared his family goodbyes:
First the loss of grandma
then mom
followed by dad and brother
two dear friends
no laughter
only heart ache until memories bloom from sorrow
grateful for loving times and connections.

Poets offered diverse perspectives on saying goodbye, reflecting on the bittersweet nature of parting. Some emphasize the enduring connections that transcend physical separation, while others focus on the potential for new beginnings and the importance of cherishing shared experiences.

Cathy Carsell wrote a poem about saying goodbye to her home:
When the live oak split
spilling half of it into our backyard
we knew the era ended.

Kathryn Goldman begged for no goodbyes:
Please wait until spring
I know you are tired
you are ready to leave.

Robin Gabbert offered a poem reflecting on being alone after a goodbye:
Perhaps you hear
know that I sing to the stars
because
I miss the gray-green sparkle of your eyes.

Valli Ferrell fashions a goodbye poem by invoking the power of memory:
Unlike the insipid blueberry or peach
the blackberry is the taste of satiety
of memory 
perfectly preserved.

John Petraglia reflects on new beginnings of spring and farewell to winter:
I cleaned my patio yesterday to honor the warming days of late March.

Spencer Johnson writes of the continual goodbyes nature constantly sings to us:
In the teeming shade of vine leaves she sang to me
remnants of morning prayer flitted and alighted
dissolved.

Famous writers have always explored goodbye. Shakespeare offered that, “Parting is such sweet sorrow” and Rumi penned, “Goodbyes are only for those who love with their eyes.” Other poets have expressed the pain of separation, such as Khalil Gibran’s, “Absence from whom we love is worse than death.”

I leave you with Dr. Seuss as he implores us, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”

Still, I am not sure what to make of the good in goodbye.

Send Marianne a line or rhyme of your thoughts about goodbyes via email to [email protected]

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