I Will Remember

--by Bohdan Sirant, 2012 (dedicated to the late Vera Jacyk) I will remember her radiant smile The squint and twinkle in her eye And the lightness of her laugh Her sparkle and her style Her graceful and easy gait (She was sporting, slim and strapping And could walk that extra mile) Her kindness, gentleness And generosity Her willingness to wait (She cared, was courteous and Was almost never late) Ill remember her tenacity Her courage and commitment Her shyness and her modesty Her conscientiousness and Her endearing curiosity Her candor and integrity Her insight and intuition Her calm competence In fulfillment of a mission Her compassion Her independence And I will fondly Contemplate with reverence In the remaining years hence The poignant power of her art Its quiet purpose and intelligence Art delicate, austere and hard Clean, sleek, intense, and stark Profound and passionate Whispering and echoing to me And triggering thoughts of Distant shifting and Mutating memories Of past struggles Barely remembered names and wistful longings Near forgotten secrets Yesteryears faded oaths Perhaps not honored

(Could they ever be?) And nave hopes That could never be met Smoky promises Dim regrets Lingering shames (I still have them) and The sacred calls of duty Ho! The sacred calls of duty That like bugled reveilles Still move the mind and Stir the soul and Touch and tug And start the heart --The aging but yearning heart-Such was her mighty art And power to move me But that was not all No, that was not all It was the beauty It was all the beauty! She created beauty When she talked and When she worked and When she walked --And when she walked She walked in beauty too Oh, yes She walked in beauty too Thats how Ill remember her Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk Vera Jacyk