Cody Bradley Memorial (Poems)

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MY BELOVED CODY
11/21/79 - 7/13/98

Shiny long hair flying behind, Moving with a Paul Bunyan stride, He flies toward his destination, With youthful zest and pride.	Struggling to be his own person, Feeling at 18 he's a man, I see the child within him, But he wants to say, "I can!"
A billed hat perched to the back, Plaid jacket swinging so free, Lover of outdoors and sunshine, He watches all there is to see.	Abandoned by dad; betrayed by "friends, Intelligence different but great, No one to understand as he does them, Far too quickly moves his fate.
Where is my tiny wide-eyed baby? Where the curious, questioning child? What happened to the happy toddler? Or the boy who explored the wild?	Despair replaces youthful dreams, Betrayal and rejection his heart sate, Caught in a tidal wave of emotion, O God! Too soon, it's too late.
Gone are his many collections Of fossils, shells, and rocks, Toys are tucked out of sight, While hours on the phone he talks.	I grieve for the light of my life, My challenging, sensitive, slim boy, Ah, if only he knew how we loved him, He'd have been saved just by our joy.
He marches to a different song, Needing so much to be free, But his heart cries for acceptance, And his soul no longer fills with glee.	Full of sorrow, I must say goodbye, To my only child - my son, my love, Clinging to many precious memories, Knowing someday I'll see him above.

Above burst out of me in about 4 minutes
sometime around 3 months after his death.
Dixie Bradley

AND NOW IT'S WINTER . . . .

I recall you as summer's child, Wandering through the hills, Seeking fossils and "gold" in the wild, Running home to share your thrills.	Oh those games of hide and seek, That we often played indoors, You called out "Mom, don't peek!" Even when it was time for chores.
There were plenty of joyous days When we were happy and free, And challenging, stick-it-out days, Head-to-head you and me.	A bundle of energy exploding about, Always living life on a dead run, You shared your experiences with a shout, Wanting me to be part of your fun.
Your room was packed with all your treasure, Rocks, lizards, posters, toys, and cars, There was scarcely room to measure, So full was it - UGH! What's in those jars!	Ah, the nights when bad dreams wouldn't stop, You cried and shouted in rage and fear, I carried you to the rocker, afraid that I'd drop My little guy as I wiped away his tear.
You really loved to try and scare me, Popping out of hiding with a shout! And then you'd laugh ever so gaily-- Once again you caught me out.	We rocked and rocked while you nestled, And I'd hum while rubbing your back, And you let go of the things you wrestled, The things that in the night would attack.
We picnicked and fished on a shale shore, And you braved the cold water to play, How well I remember that mountain reservoir, Where we spent many a golden day.	You were my buddy and I was your friend, Just the two of us made up our home. We thought we'd be together 'til journey's end, Just us-no other family around of our own.
Your cats became your brothers, Keeping you company during the night, You couldn't always rely on others, But they'd comfort you after a fight.	And Christmas was always our time of the year, Didn't really matter if it was rich or lean, Each box pinched and shook in good cheer, You know there were presents to make you beam.
Ah, the many dogs that we have had, For the two of you to romp and play, Named after a current TV cartoon fad, Used in the winter for a dog-drawn sleigh.	The years passed and now life was hard, My puckish elf began to disappear, The cliques ignored my intelligent bard, Dislike of sensitivity expressed their fear.
Playing miniature golf was a hoot! You and your buddy challenging me, We laughed as each one lined up to shoot, A HOLE IN ONE! You chuckled merrily!	Forgotten was the outdoors' call, Yearning to belong took its place, He presented to everyone his very all, Overtures often flung back in his face.
You had to learn to let me go, Afraid that maybe I wouldn't return, It happened that way with Dad, so . . . Trust was a hard lesson to learn.	Now I "didn't understand' he cried, I was not from his place and time, Ideas of his peers were to be tried, Youth moved me to the back of the line.
You smiled through all the bad times, Though illness often laid you low, Pills and treatments in endless lines, Mom? Another shot? OH NO!	How hard to let you go, my son, Especially the final goodbye. We were two and now there's one, I remember you with joy . . . and cry. AND NOW IT'S WINTER.

This was written when I was thinking of all the
wonderful memories I had of Cody as a child.
Dixie Bradley

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