Happy Birthday

Tomorrow’s your birthday.

You’d have been 15.

This is the year you’d learn to drive.

Instead, I sit here listening to your music

As the songs of the dead fill the space of my ears
Their laughter like children, their beckoning cheers
My heart longs to join them, sing songs of the sea
I remember the fallen, do they think of me?
When their bones in the ocean forever will be
Now that I’m staring down at the darkest abyss
I’m not sure what I want, but I don’t think it’s this
I remember the fallen and they think of me
For our souls in the ocean together will be

I have had a song in my heart since you died. A song I can’t tease out. The lyrics are sad, and so is the family.

But tomorrow… we’re still going to have donuts and wear our new AsherCon 2024 hoodies.

And we’re ordering Hawaiian pizza. It’s the closest thing to ham and cheese we could muster.

And then we’ll look at pictures of you.

And we’ll cry.

Because we miss you.

Because we love you.

Because… of you. G’nite Asher. Love you.

And through the battles we wage
When our shields fall away
The armor cracks and breaks
If ever our torches fade
We’ll see the sun come up again
We will climb higher than we’ve been
We got a fire that burns within
We are the Dragonhearted