I never told you

I never told you...
How much I really loved you
How much it meant to me that you never told me I was too young or too small
How much influence you had on my way of thinking
How much I appreciated and treasured you
How proud I was of you
How much I wanted to know of your life
How I admired your steadfast faith
How I loved your sense of humor

And now that it’s too late, I wish-….
That I’d asked you so many more questions
That I’d taken the time to listen to you more
That I’d come to visit you more often
That you could come and have coffee with me now
That you could put things into perspective for me again
That you knew how much I miss you

Why do we need to experience loss in order to appreciate what we already have?