Andrea Gibson passed away on July 14, 2025 surrounded by the people they loved the most. They died as they lived - unapologetically real, honest, hopeful, and with a full heart.
Many of you reading this may not know Andrea Gibson, the poet laureate of Colorado, and one of the most noteworthy and powerful voices in our world today. I found Andrea Gibson, or maybe their work found me, at a time when I was ready to hear it, read it, see it, and really integrate it into my life. Gibson’s poetry struck a chord in me - grief, loss, living, fear, uncertainty, hope, presence. Their work expressed all the feelings I struggled to even survive through and offered me a way to sit and be with my emotions fully.
As I read the announcement, I could hardly breathe and my eyes overflowed. I didn’t know Andrea personally. Never met them, never had the honor to attend a live event, but I FELT Andrea Gibson’s work in a way no other poet has ever touched me. I read and reread quotes, poems, listened to their voice as they read their almost musically inclined poetry on their Substack - Things That Don’t Suck. I shared their work with everyone I knew even reading it many times for classes I taught - hoping to offer more of their work to a wider audience who probably needed it as much as I did. When I awoke this morning, my heart felt heavy with this loss. Andrea Gibson was an outspoken voice for the unheard, the forgotten, the dismissed. They helped us see the world through a rare lens few of us have ever had the opportunity to gaze through.
They lived present, thankful, and full of gratitude for every moment on this earth while at the same time fully feeling/embracing/sharing the uncertainty, fear, and grief that goes with living with cancer (and in this world right now). I would be lying if I didn’t know the end was near. Andrea was very open on their Substack and Instagram posts about how the treatments were going and how they were failing. But never once did Gibson whine, rant, complain. They uplifted, challenged us to live with more intention, to LIVE FULLY. Every post, every poem, every quote, an invitation to BE more in this moment savoring it all no matter how difficult.
I have written about my focus this year to live more fully and with presence and intention. Andrea Gibson fueled that. Gibson is no longer here on this plane of existence but I seek to honor their words and their gift to me through choosing to not let life pass me by, living in a dream world, just surviving, focusing on the things that are unimportant and sending my energy to the people and situations that aren’t a priority.
I choose love. I choose life. I choose to work hard and embrace living the best life ever and giving back.
Gibson’s death also has me thinking about my legacy. What do I leave behind? What has been my gift to the world? Have I really committed to being fully me in my brightest shining light? Have I let myself be distracted by the silliest things? I don’t want to wake up some day and think I wasted it all on worrying about whether my body is thin enough or my skin wrinkle free enough or whether I posted enough on social media/have enough likes/followers or whether I have the coolest new thing on my body/in my house/in my car (etc.). I want to worry about whether I heard the birds sing their full song this morning or I gave my family/friends enough hugs and love today or that I am taking enough time each day to show everyone how important they are to me or embracing the full range of my skills/talents/abilities or I took the time to help the world be a better place today.
Dearest Andrea - the world is less without you in it but you have left us the greatest legacy of all time, your words. May your voice continue to ring true and may we LISTEN, really listen, and take your words to heart. May we live more fully and be more true to ourselves. May we focus on the people and the things that are the most important to us and let go of the little stuff that really doesn’t matter in the end. May we live, love, laugh, cry, breathe, grieve, and so much more without criticism or guilt. May we fully embrace WHO WE ARE in every moment. May we live as beautifully as you did and may we leave this world with grace.
Love, Aprille XXX
If you are interested in exploring Andrea Gibson’s work, you can visit their Substack -Things That Don’t Suck and also check out their poetry books through your local small bookseller. Here is my favorite poem…
THE BIRDS WROTE ME A POEM
We sing after the storm. We sing during it. We sing through the blizzard. We sing through the percussion of the hail. We sing through the lightning. We harmonize with the thunder. What are you doing with your vocal chords? Why on earth are your eyes still closed? It’s dawn and our song is on your Aspen tree’s radio. Feather your hair and get out here with your high notes, hot stuff. Why stay in bed when you could be high-fiving the sunrise? Human awe is an endangered species. Do not let your astonishment go extinct. Go wild for the wildness of your being. Sing off key and call it a yet-to-be-invented note. Why are you acting like a birdcage caught your heart? No matter what hurts, love yourself enough to never think your ribcage is locked. Just because your life isn’t a piece of cake doesn’t mean it can’t be sweet. We know you’ve been taught the opposite, but for goodness sakes, think your own thoughts. Don’t be a parrot on the world’s shoulder. Ask new questions. What do I have in common with the person I judge most? Why is loving someone who doesn’t love me back a sad tune? Isn’t the one who loves, the one who is lucky? Consider the possibility that no one can break your trust. It’s your trust, after all. No one else’s. Write this down with a feather pen: My emotions are doors opened by my willingness to feel them. You can feel sad without chaining yourself to sadness. You can feel fear without believing fear is the truth. If that feels difficult at first, just wing it. (That’s our motto. Just wing it.) It is absolutely possible to make a nest of a hurricane. To make a clearing of the fog. Ask yourself, “What love can I make of this loss?” Humans, remember, are nightshades. They grow in the dark. Does that mean you are made by your pain? No. Does that mean you are made by your decision to turn your pain into medicine for the world? No. You are made by knowing that you can’t be made or unmade. Understand who you are without your beliefs about who you should be. Stop clipping the wings of life’s magic. Beneath your running mind is a heart that knows that kind of exercise is ridiculous. Every day is a great day to hatch wonder. Rubble the walls between yourself and everyone until you’re sure the scenes of strangers' lives will pass before your eyes when you die. If that doesn't make sense right now, it will one morning, when you wake at sunrise, walk out to your porch, and see a flock of ten thousand starlings circling above your head. There I am, you’ll think, looking up at us. There I am.
To those Andrea Gibson was closest to and loved the most, my thoughts are with you as you mourn this huge loss in your life. X
Thank you for sharing their poetry, it is beautiful.
Thank you Aprille for sharing this sad news and this inspiration. I have been very moved by Andrea's words. Thank you for introducing me to them xxxx