Eclipsing the Grave

far from home
the old granite had brown spots

at the crumbling cemetery
her dates on a small square stone

sacred sainted mother
still their shining light

but the grave gives no comfort
merely marks the death date

her daughter looks away
clear sky overhead

Bedell Phillips, a graduate from the University of Pennsylvania, also holds a master’s degree. Her poetry can be found in Gravel (of the University of Arkansas), The Lit Fuse, and Tower Journal. Thrums and Tapestries, her third book, launched October 2016. Bedell lives in Exeter, New Hampshire and Jupiter, Florida.