One Sunday in Late September

Five things I can see:

• Red granite shining in morning sunlight 
• Cobalt blue sky
• Trees growing amidst plots
• The shadow of a steeple 
• My mother’s name carved in stone

Four things I can touch

• A bright red folding chair
• Fine grass clippings gathered in the crevices
• Cold smooth surface of stone
• The place where she is buried

Three things I can hear

• Birds singing
• A distance train
• Her voice in my memories 

Two things I can smell

• A trace of ocean air
• Still fresh flowers from the second anniversary of her passing

One thing I can taste

• The salt of a tear