Tribute to Stephen Jeanes, 1952 - 2026

Devastating was the loss that came around so fast
We hadn't quite prepared ourselves for that night to be his last. 
Left on the coffee table was a warm cup of tea
A poised pen, his glasses, his neat black diary.

If only I could tell him now, it's all going to be okay,
Your weak and tired body, is soon to fly away.
I'd see again those blue eyes dance, his warm and big bushy smile,
We'd find some interesting historical thing to sit and ponder a while...

He'd laugh to the sky and I'd see that glint of gold,
All those mischievous stories his laughter lines told.
To hold on to his hand as we jump over a brook, 
To survey the landscape and see the route we took.

All these precious moments that now have nowhere to be,
Except in my mind, in my heart and to live alongside me. 
So when I feel lost on this ocean of grief,
I'll look to the sky, take a breath and with relief,

Remember,
He'll be in the wind upon our faces, among swifts flying high above.
He'll be in tall wild grasses, meadows, flowers, he'll be there in all he loved.