waking up

these are the in between days

between Dad's birthday
and his new day

He turned 80 on the 24th of January

and turned a blind corner into eternity
on the 2nd of February
2012

slipped away while we were gone

Did he slip into awareness as well?

as through a slow dawn 

   where brightness from the east
   seeps into the darkness 

      mixing it into rose and dawn
      and coral and pink light  

before the glimmering arc of sun 

   slips through the barrier
   of earth and heaven 

awakening slowly
shaking off a lethargy accumulated over years

 blinking, breathing carefully

 losing grip of something
   he once clung to

 staggering backwards
  as a new reality dawns

or did he burst onto a new scene 

with sharp intake of breath through lungs suddenly renewed

eyes jolted awake 

body tingling

mind sharpened in the crossing

hearing sounds to make his heart glad

I'm just wondering