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Poem of the Month: July 2001

For Jihan
July 10, 1942-June 25, 2001

PERFECTION WASTED And another regrettable thing about death is the ceasing of your own brand of magic, which took a whole life to develop and market -- the quips, the witticisms, the slant adjusted to a few, those loved ones nearest the lip of the stage, their soft faces blanched in the footlight glow, their laughter close to tears, their tears confused with their diamond earrings, their warm pooled breath in and out with your heartbeat, their response and your performance twinned. The jokes over the phone. The memories packed in the rapid-access file. The whole act. Who will do it again? That's it: no one; imitators and descendants aren't the same. --John Updike Journal prompts: What's "another regrettable thing about death"? Write a Character Sketch of someone you miss. Write a list of names of those you love. What memories are "packed in the rapid-access file" for each? What is their own "brand of magic"? Write a story of the most memorable funeral you've ever attended. Jihan Matteson died just before her 59th birthday, nearly five years after her first diagnosis of breast cancer. She is the author of thousands of pages of journals about the experience of treating cancer holistically. She leaves a daughter and son-in-law, Betsy and Casey; a 2-year-old granddaughter, Bella; a son, Joey; sisters Mica and Linda; a cat, Tom; a writing circle; an e-mail journal list; and 10,000 friends and relations who love her and will miss her greatly.

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