"at the close of day" was written shortly after the death of my aunt. The tone of the piece portrays some of my emotions at the time, and is intended to be a quiet, reflective work. The sustained chords at the beginning gradually build in intensity to a climax. There is a coda-like section at the end with flowing eighth-notes that uses similar harmonic language to the first part of the piece. The title is taken from a line of a poem that was read at my aunt's funeral, entitled "I'm Free" (author unknown): "...I could not stay another day, to laugh, to live, to work or play. Tasks left undone must stay that way, I found my peace at the close of day...."