Shards

Many say that when a loved one dies,
Part of your heart dies with your love.
I wonder then about that part;
Did it die? It aches inside my chest!

What happens to that piece of heart?
Does it fall upon the floor and break
Into shards which cut the soul?
It must, for shards are scattered through my house!

One shard lies behind the picture of
My love when we were young at play
And life was full of love and joy.
Oh, it feels much emptier today!

One shard waits for me upon the porch:
The lover’s moon floats overhead,
Whisp’ring memories of kisses shared.
Oh, those sweet words which I hear no more!

One lies buried in the box of tools
My love would carry on the way
To fix a thing or two today.
Oh, I miss those gentle hands at work!

Shards lay scattered ev’rywhere I look
And lest they cut my soul to bleed,
I sweep and clean most thoroughly,
Picking up my shattered piece of heart.

Ev’ry now and then I find a shard
When least I think to miss my love:
A smell, a sound, the little things,
How they cause my aching heart to bleed!

Feeling pain too sharp to bear,
I pray to God for mighty strength.
Relief I find when I recall:
Jesus died that Man might live again!