(The Grief Trilogy, Part III)
Sorry shadows creep inside
and sleep in corners that were yours.
Invisible—but clearly there—
they wait for me behind the doors.
I often stare at emptiness—
disbelieving, for a spell,
and silently the shadows fill
the hollow spaces where you dwelled.
There’s one now, and I can feel it
faint as breath upon my bed—
not the foot, but farther up,
where you laid your furry head.
On the stoop, where you stood
waiting for your morning walk;
across the room, where wordlessly
you followed us with eyes that spoke.
A shadow lingers on the couch—
the absence that I feel the most.
We spent so many hours there,
and when you left me, I was lost.
My enemies, these barren spaces
crowd the house—more than a few.
And yet I keep my enemies close,
afraid of fully losing you.
……………………….