Echoes

1.
The smell of pine and
your disapproving eyes
are all I remember
anymore. I was a child,
really. I learned
everything the hard way,
clawing at you until
my fingenails tore and bled.

2.
Protecting me in a strange
and hidden way.

You never told me.

The arms
of the clock point only
to a time already passed.

3.
I am sorry.

4.
I sift through memories of you,
sorting them into piles.
Keep. Sell. Donate.
Everyone needs someone
with eyes that green.

I look for you in everyone,
believing sometimes
that you will come back
to explain.

Force your flowers to the sun.

You are the only real
ghost to haunt me.

5.
A smooth transition
from loss to fear.
I would have fit perfectly
in your arms.

6.
I never loved you.
It felt better that way.

I enjoyed the sweet,
ripe taste of deception.

7.
A pendulum.

8.
I miss you most
when you are holding me.

You fear a fragility I
do not possess.
I plan for the day
when I will let you go.