Mourning

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“May 9, 1979 Del Mar, California” from the Sunsets and Dawns series 1976-9 Aviva Rahmani

I mourn every past love.

I mourn snow so deep I might fall forever into softness.

I mourn what I never heard my parents say and what I never listened to them tell me.

I mourn each bird that flew into a window and broke its neck.

I mourn my youth, wasted, as usual.

I mourn the days when I thought everything was possible.

I mourn the democracy I took for granted.

I mourn each species lost forever.

I mourn each fallen leaf crumbling into dust.

I mourn my favorite perfume, now discontinued.

I mourn handwritten thank you notes.

I mourn the swing past my waist of my own dark hair.

I mourn long dead old lovers and those who found peace with another.

I mourn yesterday’s dawn and sunset.

I mourn every delusion and every dream.

I am ready to witness tonight’s twilight and tomorrow’s dawn.

-Aviva Rahmani Nov. 18, 2025