If I Die Poem by Jahidul Islam Onik

If I die, there is nothing you can do.
If I die naturally—when my cells stop replicating,
When blood no longer carries breath
Know that I am about to go. And I know it too.

If I die deprived of love,
Then love yourself a bit more in my name.

If I die needing peace in my mind,
Sit down, breathe, and remember me.

If I die during monsoon,
Carry no umbrella to my tomb
Let the rain soak into the soil that holds me.

If I die alone, where no one knows where I've been,
I may still be happy, yet my eyes would long to see you once more.
When you hear the news, do one thing:
Take a close look at yourself
Send me that moment.
For now, I have no boundaries of giving or receiving.

If I die reading or holding a book,
Bury that book with me.
I'll be close to some absurd story,
And you may see a bluebird rise from my shattered chest.
Read that book slowly,
Humming gently at my grave.

If I die happily
With family and loved ones surrounding me,
No poverty, no tension, no guilt,
Then know: it was the perfect time for my departure.
But still—
Will I not deserve to be loved and understood
As I was in life?

What has passed; come, speak with me.
Now I hear everything.
I see everything I always longed to see.
I am not where they buried me.
I am here, within you.
Within my soul.

Ask me how it is, here.
Ask me if I've had coffee in weeks.

Ask how painful death is
For the living ones.
Ask how painful life is
For the dead.