Pain will Follow

Pain will follow
I step forward into the days after tomorrow
And must realize
That pain will follow

I will watch my parents wither away
Until nothing is left but inevitable tears
Nothing is left but lonely rooms
Where memories dance
In the light of the sun

All my life, I would never imagine
Never dared to imagine
The absence of these beautiful souls
The ones who brought me to be the man I am
The ones who made me the boy I was

How their aromas will haunt me
Unleashing memories by the millions
Fluttering through me in swarms
Each wing a shard of glass
To remind me of the promises I couldn’t keep

But they are here now
Love is here
Their hands are here
To hold me aloft

But I know…
Nothing can prepare me
For the pain
Make no mistake
Pain will follow.