If I should die, think only this of me
Think what you have always thought of me
Don't change how you feel about me
because you believe this was a tragedy,
when it was nothing but a painful reality.
Don't praise how much you loved me.
Talk about how I loved others.
Don't shout how much you hate me.
Talk about how I dealt with your hatred.
Don't emphasize my mistakes.
Talk about how I learnt from them.
Don't see me as a hero,
just because my heart rate is now zero.
Don't make your time with me a life of lies
just because I came across death
which will always be the painful truth.
When you pay your respects,
pay them with honesty.
Then I will be at peace.
© Momelezi Mdingi
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Grade 9
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