Five Houses, One Empty

Five houses, one empty

And the other ones

Want to know why

The cracked gray roof

That lets in the rain?

The broken glass

Among the grass

That grows too high

Only to die

But nothing that can’t be fixed

Nothing that can’t be cut

The empty house

Sits on a corner

Watching its windows

Fall down

The plumbing is fine

The wiring works

The driveway is spacious

And the rooms well-lit

Three of the other houses went

For seven figures

Just a year ago

But one house sits

And rests

And won’t be haunted

By anyone at all

Nobody’s ever been in

Nobody’s ever rapped on a door frame

Nobody’s ever seen the cellar

Up in January

The snow piles high

And the other four houses

Are tended to

With fires set

And blankets brought down

From closet shelves

The fifth house whistles

And lets the cold

Come in

Double past the hour

On any given night

An owl will wager

It’s safe

To make its way

Into

The lopsided attic

With its trunks, never opened

No telling how they got there

Nobody’s ever been in

Nobody’s ever

Nobody would dare

But there they are

The trunks

Covered in black paper

That can be torn by the beak

Of a barn owl

Or any kind of bird

That feels courageous

The owls fly in

And all that’s left of them

Are fine feathers

Scattered throughout the hallways

Where pictures should hang

Not because they’ve been harmed

But because nothing stays the same

Once it enters a place

That’s otherwise sealed

The owls become the dust

Or the chipped paint

Or the brick

Or a little bit of everything

The other four houses

Host gatherings

Parties

People

From the comfort of numbers

And the pride of punch

They look out at their cars

Somehow parked

Right in front

Of the empty house

No one is going home tonight

So make up the guest beds

Take up the linen

Hand out the extra towels

And wish them all good night

There is no danger

In a house that’s full

But an empty house

Can stretch its emptiness

To every other house

On the street

Until the hardest breath

Drops out of the lungs

And the kindest words

Choke the throat

One little guest

Hears a tapping on the window

And he knows it’s an owl

That managed to escape

The owl will fly

To each of the four houses

Looking to be permitted

But once you’ve flown

Through a battered coat of paint

And a broken pane

Nobody can let you in

Nobody can say

You’re welcome