Obits
My first job was an internship
At the New Rochelle Standard Star.
I called the bereaved and asked
About the deceased. Intruding
On grief was terrifying,
But I was good at it.
I interviewed Gloria Steinem
& Andy Warhol.
I heard how someone’s father
Turned to the wall,
Someone’s mother said,
Take care of—
A lover blew bubbles
With his last breath.
I began my own obit,
She interned in death.
*
Jayne Benjulian is the author of Five Sextillion Atoms (Saddle Road Press, 2016). Her poems, widely published, have been shortlisted for the James Hearst Poetry Prize, the Fish Poetry Prize and the Bridport Prize. She served as chief speechwriter for Apple and investigator for the Public Defender in King County, WA . She lives in the Berkshire Hills and coaches a speech and debate team in Western Massachusetts. www.jaynebenjulian.com
A jewel of a poem. I keep my family and friends’ memories and history alive with their funeral programs, and I was just poring over them before reading your poem.
Love, love, love this poem! Especially as a former small-town community journalist, who wrote more than my share of obituaries. ❤️
Fascinating to learn that about you.