Angels Among Us

 

Four Years, More Tears

After losing my husband to brain cancer, it helps me to talk,
The first time I attended the Angels Among Us fundraiser walk,
My husband had been gone for less than a year,
His memory was fresh, and I felt numb, and had no fear,
Then the pandemic occurred, and the walk was postponed for 2020 and 2021,
I couldn’t wait to attend, when the crisis was done,
Now, 2022, and I am up early and ready to go,
All by myself, my support I would show!!!
I arrived at the event as the 5K runners were crossing the finish line,
Cheers were ringing out as I parked my car and was feeling fine,
But the “fine” wouldn’t last as I strolled through the activities,
It hit me hard: waves of emotion and a tremendous flow of memories,
I saw the families there going through what I had,
It made my heart hurt, and it made me sad,
Literally, my heart ached inside my chest,
I wanted to escape, go home, I must confess,
I was no longer numb, the reality was too real,
I can’t really describe the way it made me feel,
I was grateful for Duke Hospital and all of their medical team,
I recognized many who provided us with compassion, but it felt like a dream,
A dream I couldn’t wake up from, though I was determined to stay,
I was uncomfortable and overwhelmed by the events of the day,
The awards were given, and entertainment provided,
But when all the fun activities had subsided,
The survivors there were brought up on stage to be celebrated, as they should,
I guess I desperately wanted my husband to have been one of them- if only he could,
Deep down I knew it wasn’t meant to be,
The fundraiser raised millions- a total of 3.3,
But when the song “Angels Among Us” rang out from the loudspeakers, and the walk began,
I was overcome with a flood of sobbing tears,
These tears had been bottled up for 4 long years,
It was a cleansing cry, a long-needed release,
I found it hard to believe that my husband was deceased,
I guess I’d been running on adrenaline for so long,
It was time to be weak and quit trying to be strong,
Physically, mentally, and emotionally I was weakened that day,
But in my weakness, spiritually I was strengthened anyway,
I persevered to the end, although it was hard to do,
I hope this story will encourage you.

Tammy Harvey
Written: 5/21/2022