A Beer and a Balloon

Tomorrow marks year number three

Since you left us all behind

To embark upon your journey

Of the everlasting kind

I still recall the day you passed

The hurt I felt inside

Whenever I first heard the news

I cried and cried and cried

But then I saw your toothless grin

Rising from my memory

You laughed and told me not to cry

"Just drink a beer for me"

So drink I did, a single beer

And shared among our friends

Sweet laughter and fond memories

What you'd done and where you'd been

They say that when a loved one dies

Or is taken way too soon

To send your love up to the skies

Release it with a balloon

Tradition has never been my style

But this one, I think I'll keep

That way, when I remember you

I'll laugh instead of weep

This time each year, I'll think of you

My friend, gone way too soon

I'll celebrate the life you had

With a beer and a balloon

08.29.06

in loving memory of clifton