A Handprint

All that is left is a handprint,

He had a smile that could brighten a room, a laugh that could melt all hearts,

But all that is left is a handprint on a mirror,

A mirror that she now sees her tears in,

Every day,

He taught her everything she didn’t know,

But he forgot one thing for the longest time,

He forgot to teach her how to live,

He forgot to teach her how to live,

Without him.

On the twenty-fourth of August,

She had to learn that on her own.

Every day she stared at that handprint,

Wishing that it was just a dream,

Wondering what could have been,

Her heart broke into smaller pieces as each day passed,

She looked at that handprint and wished it would speak to her,

But nothing happened.

She shuffled through many photographs,

Which triggered memories,

As she began to giggle,

The happiness caused sadness,

Causing her to break down into tears.

She visited his grave,

And became angry by what it said,

“Brendan J. McQuade,

Dec. 4. 1996 - Aug. 24. 2010,

Beloved son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin, and friend,

A one in a million kid,

With a one in a million heart,

And a smile that made this world a better place,

Taken too soon by Congenital Heart Defects”.

She thought,

It was disrespectful,

His life summed up in a couple of cliche lines,

He was so much more than what was there,

He deserved so much more.

As days go on,

She realizes that it was not just a handprint on the mirror,

She realizes that he left a handprint,

On her heart,

And on every other soul’s heart that he touched,

She realizes that the tombstone was not for her,

Or anyone who was close to him,

It was for those who did not know him,

For those who knew him,

Have the cherished memories,

That no one can take away.

She looked at her reflection,

And muttered to herself,

“My heart split into four pieces,

One for you,

One for Grandpa,

One for the love that went with you two,

And one for me to keep.”

To the rest of the world, all that was left was a handprint on the mirror,

But she,

She had so much more.