you will not be buried
when you are freed from the shackles of your flesh
your ashes will erupt from the flaming womb
with jazz hands and vaudeville fervor
not common or gray but
dazzling with iridescent pinks and blues to
match the irrepressible sparkle of your eyes
that everyone knows so well
your remains will reach for the sky
as your thoughts so often did
your songs of delight will echo through the ages
scissor stepping and side leaping joyously
along the most willfully wayward clouds
spreading silver linings on them like greasepaint
when i squint into the sun just right
i’ll see your smile beaming rainbow reflections
across the untold horizons of our imagination
you were always a fierce and radiant survivor
you did not pass all those milestone years
traversing the ravages of time and
various personal perils
to wither away in a dark box sealed away from view
darling you shine for all time
you are the light and the breath of rarified air
that gives life to future generations
rise and shine beautiful
you will not be buried