Our Henry Lawton

He was a Presence
even when we could not see him —
on-stage, off-stage,
behind-the-scenes, seemingly everywhere.
He was diligent, wise, funny,
always quietly reliable.
He was soft-spoken,
but resolute in pursuing
the hidden, unwanted story
behind the apparent, desired story.
His unyielding refrain:
“Think about it,” he would wryly admonish.
Some of us are too young
or too new to have known him,
but his presence will be felt
even when we won’t know
it is his.
Still, his footsteps are silent now,
and we must walk a path without him —
his legacy, our debt,
his absence, our grief.

[NB: This poem was written for presentation at the Henry Lawton Memorial panel at the International Psychohistorical Association convention, New York City, 5 June 2014 and should have been published in the Lawton Memorial Issue.]

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