Light Subtracts Itself

"When someone dies, you don't get over it by forgetting; you get over it by remembering, and you are aware that no person is ever truly lost or gone once they have been in our life and have loved us, as we have loved them." - Leslie Marmon Silko

My long-time friend Maryfrances Wagner has a new book of poetry: Light Subtracts Itself. I got it Friday and have been gulping it down since. During the time she wrote the book, she lost fourteen close friends and family members. The book is not only a perspective on loss, but on rejuvenation and rebirth.

Maryfrances' book is very well written. It is endorsed by poets Gary Gildner, Denise Low and William Trowbridge.

Of course I'm also savoring the book because I have known Maryfrances since 1986. She has been both friend and mentor, in writing and in life. She was the first person I called when I heard my father had died of cancer.

It takes so much time and effort to write our lives down, in any form. But it is worth it. We need to remember.