Inspired by “I Dreamed Again” by Anne Michaels, and influenced at the end by “The Little Red Hen.” It needs editing, as do most things I write in under 15 minutes.
Since I’ve been gone,
I have begun to sing again,
I read more books,
I watch less tv,
I walk more,
I hike more,
I sleep more,
I smile more.
Since I’ve been gone
From you,
I have been solitary,
I have sung loudly and danced around
In public,
I have found a coffee shop
where I have been writing
Writing in a journal
Writing poetry
I have been creative.
Since you moved and I didn’t go with you,
I have lived more simply,
I have missed the warmth of a body next to mine
I have missed daily conversation
I have missed physical contact.
I have not missed the cold I felt
In the twilight of our time together,
I have not missed when the darkness fell
And our life together splintered
And the divide depeened.
Since I’ve been gone,
I have grown,
I have lived.
I have learned again to love
Myself
And to trust
Myself
I have learned how to move on
Pick up the pieces of my heart
And soul
And build a new mosaic.
Since I’ve been gone,
I have found a new way to live
And I am no longer gone,
I am traveling
Yet I feel like I have arrived.
