What Remains

[Rathbone]

In some regions of China,
a dead man’s reputation
is considered proportional
to the number of guests
who attend his funeral;
strippers are often hired
to pull crowds
In Madagascar, the dead
are often pulled from graves
and carried about, body danced
above attendees, but only once
every seven years
Stoney ground in Tibet
makes burial often impossible,
so the dead are often chopped,
mixed with flour and left
to be eaten by scavenging birds
In Wisconsin, my own father I think the poem starts here
is stored in cold porcelain;
at the funeral, I suppressed an urge
to pilfer some ashes for fear I really like pilfer. Its usually used to describe stealing things that aren't very valuable. Ashes aren't valuable. BUT to you, they are.
of not knowing which body part
was being placed into my hand, or
being smudged beneath my fingerprints
Yesterday, I took his herring bone sport
coat down to a charity store; hopefully,
I gave it away to someone else’s father;
five years after his death, we continue
to misunderstand each otherfeels like a cliffhanger! How? That is a brilliant thought but I wish I could look back at the poem now and see a few examples of how you misunderstood each other

A lot of this feels like Wikipedia. It is information. Interesting information but..
Perhaps you are just trying to show how different countries/cultures handle death.. or maybe you decided to share those facts for a different purpose.
Regardless, for me, the poem starts when you begin talking about your father. Picturing the ashes in your hand.. someone else wearing his coat.. it evokes emotion from me because I have lost loved ones.. I have urns that contain family members ashes. I can relate.
I don't get any emotional response from the factual presentation of the information in the first half.
If you are attached to the factual information, perhaps you could find a way to connect it ..compare it.. to the death of your father.
Thanks for sharing, Jenn

A great poem, very powerful once it ends, but as Jenn said, its almost as if you left us with a cliffhanger. I personally like the incorporation of the factual data on death, i feel as if it sets a mood for how you are feelings at a distance from the death. I think what you should do is make one or two stanzas explaining a little more about your relationship with your father prior to his death and place it as an intro. that would tie up this poem and let people leave with a strong emotional, and misunderstood feeling that i believe you may be striving for.