I would never have thought

I would never have thought

To be here

For so long

Living and breathing

Sleep walking

Talking to strangers

Smiling at jokes

Finding joy

In a children's song

Dreaming with them

Admiring their passion

Content to wait

For an invitation

To participate

In a creative endeavour

An experiment

With bicarbonate of soda

And vinegar

Loved for my own sake

When part of me

Wonders

Why

I am not in a chair

Facing a window

Waiting to die

As my father did

I never thought

To still be here

With a life to live

Without you

In my heart

But not by my side

In any real sense

Other than spiritually

As science contends

A part of the brain

Is responsible

For creating an illusion

Of religious confusion

Everything

Under the sun

Is in doubt

Whether I whisper

Or shout

And still, I wonder

How long must I fight

Before what is wrong

Is revealed

To be right.