Napowrimo Day 18: Write an elegy (poem that mourns one who is dead) in which the abstraction of sadness is communicated in physical and tangible detail.

Wrote this fast because I started crying before I even put pen to paper. And I realize it’s still pretty abstract even though the prompt told me not to be. Can’t escape it!

Grandpa used to roll the dough
for the dumplings Grandma made
they tasted like hard work
and dedication
but most of all love
my childhood in
scrumptious pocket sized packages
Grandma’s dumplings are still delicious
without Grandpa by her side
but the dumpling skins aren’t quite
the same
and I think about how one day
I’ll crave the perfect dumpling
search every restaurant
but I know
I could eat all the dumplings in the world
made by famous chefs
I could try to recreate it
and the grief will come
in the realization that
I’ll never eat theirs again
they will always be missing