they can return
in new and different ways
some of the things
thought lost

my mother and I were
closer in her old age
though we always loved
language and books

a past illness led to me
simply sitting with her
for hours as that was
something I could do

conversations
the trust that grows
through decades
of unconditional love

now sometimes
these many years
since her passing
I remember what she said
and the advice still applies

Ellen Grace Olinger