Here is a copy of the poem that Lindsey Royce read at the service for Barbara, who was a cherished member of our sangha and passed in December 2023. Thank you Lindsey for opening your heart and sharing your profound tribute to our dear Barbara.
ISAMBA, MOON GODDESS OF DEATH, BRING HER BACK
In memory of Barbara Bradley-Rutz
Isamba, you benevolent assassin,
take my heart blanched by her death
and throw it into the ocean
as one might a debt of driftwood.
Were you the midwife of her waning
days, you who birthed her back
to spirit? My thoughts are blackened
hummingbirds, Jupiter sunk in
a bucket, a drowned cat in a knotted
bag about which we cry—Why?
If only we were 20 years younger,
she would be alive in her spiritual goodness.
Isamba, I am empty today.
Please cast moonlight over the roses
on her grave. Over my dark hair,
make a halo there. I will be fertile
ground, assume her virtue in her honor,
her kindness, dry sense of humor,
wine and chocolate toasts to good times.
I’ll remember her heart that failed
from too much loving, her joy in
the touch of autumn leaves swirling,
the taste of her winter cheese fondue,
the spring scent of earth after rain.
by Lindsey Royce