Unfinished Business

 have I done the "necessary work
of mourning"? we never noticed
death, people simply stopped
appearing, transitioning to
dead at a respectful distance
 
occasionally a dead person might
appear for a day or two, never stop
popping up in dreams, alive again
their new death worse than before
 
maybe I mourned, but we rarely
talked about how it happened
as if everyone knew and was
embarrassed, it's embarrassing
to die or pay undue attention
 
the scattered few became a
multitude, and I didn't have 
time to stop and think about
each one, claims of the living
seizing and holding the stage
 
unfinished business piles up
I throw up my hands and
reverently let them slip away
if that's the work I've done it