TILL WE DREAM TOGETHER -By Nikkita Orok Duke (Cambridge) Friend, You lie so still; motionless, Your face so pale, Your skin icy cold that it freezes my blood under the touch But, it cannot freeze this moment. You possessed such enthralling beauty, Beholding you was a divine blessing Shall we ever find another so fair? You were an angel, Our earthly eyes were incapable of noticing your wings Yet I witnessed your powers, Only you could light your friends’ spirits with a simple smile And when you held their hands There was more depth to the contact, it seemed Buried beneath the surface; You touched their hearts, And mine. Regrettably, the dead cannot speak! It hurts physically that we shall never know of your last thoughts, Did this world leave you time to say The Grace To pray that God receives your spirit? Lord, did you grant her any final redemption? It is believed God only calls the finest back to Heaven, We entertain this incident with inferior surprise yet vast pleasure that you found favour in His eyes, As you did in ours. Your unaccompanied exodus is a test of the faith of your survivors And Lord, I am humbled, Never will I know a greater tragedy than a sprouting tree cut prematurely; A developing flower plucked before its bloom; A loved one pronounced dead scarcely two decades after the celebration of her birth, Here we stand; unprepared. I never met you, alas, I never will Still, the pleasure was all mine, Having known you was a golden road discovered, Hopefully that will lead me to you one day, When we dream together. God, please give her peace in the arms of your angels, Let her sins be forgiven and her righteousness multiplied. AMEN. R.I.P. CHIAMAKA NWABUNIE ~ Nikkita Duke