Lost and Found

Our introduction to forgetfulness comes early
with lost sweaters, notes from school, dollar bills,
that morph into years of dire disappearances:
Santa, the Easter Bunny, a grandparent,
waist-length hair, girlfriends, blind trust in power.
Later, a few things stay with us as we discover
the unmatched joys of having, even holding.
We relax into thinking the good things will last.
Now, stunned out of naïve complacency
by the anguish of our mounting national losses,
our fear of losing things has returned, made worse
by personal bereavements: mentors, heroes,
lovers, friends, songwriters, peacemakers, poets.
Emptied of optimism, we let sorrow fill the hollow.
Oh, what would our beloved deceased have us do?
What would their last and lasting lesson be?
Yes, let’s do that.
So that we are not lost.

in appreciation and memory of Mary Oliver, Dolly Parton, Wendell Berry,
Ron Koertge, Gloria Steinem, Annie Dillard, and my friend Missy Todd Patterson
by Anne McCrady, 2026