I Believe in Life

                              by Karen Friedland


not an afterlife,
but the one we’ve got
right here.

I believe in the earth,
its changing seasons,
its people whose paths
I’ve been so lucky to cross,
its sturdy animals, too.

No regrets, no bitterness,
no pettiness—
that’s behind me, now.

I’ve entered a holy realm—
not the bardo—

just savoring my last moments
in sunshine,
as if in prayer.


* * * * *

Once a grant writer by trade, Karen Friedland had poetry published in the Lily Poetry Review, Nixes Mate Review, One Art, and others. She has twice been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her books are Places That Are Gone and Tales from the Teacup Palace. Karen lived in Boston with her husband, two dogs and a cat. She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in November 2021, two days before her 58th birthday, and died on April 14, 2024.