When I tell you “I love you” it’s because I truly do.

In years gone by some loved ones have died

And I never got to say how much I loved them

Or to even say good-bye.

What does “I love you” mean to me?

We are friends, You are family.

We connect in matters of the heart

And I would miss you dearly

If ever we had to part.

When each morning I wish you a good day,

My hope is that you read it and feel loved –

It’s simply my way of letting you know

you are being thought of.

Life has taught me only too well

That yesterday is gone, it can’t be undone

And as for tomorrow, it may not even come.

All we have is this moment, today.

And it’s a blessing each new morning when we wake.

So just in case I haven’t yet found a way

To tell you how much you mean to me…

Thank you for being that friend

Who I can love like family.

It’s clear to me that the things we do

and the words we say

Are an expression of the love

we both hope to convey.

 

© Julie Ann Bryant 2016

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Here is my back-story to this poem …

This poem was written following the funeral of a man known to my husband and me, who was involved in a fatal workplace accident. Inspired by the eulogies given by his sons, I felt compelled to put pen to paper and these words just flowed.