Now Mary

 One day you’ll go

And pack a bag

I’ll find the hallway

Empty of

Your coat

The footsteps

Through the sprinkler

Leading to

A waiting car

And that’ll be all

Like they say

That’ll be all

I’ll make my tea

I’ll have my treat

My old morning routine

The newspaper

Won’t come that day

But I’ll be glad to have

One less thing

To read

I had my fun

I had my time

I’ll go upstairs

To sleep

The arguments

For starting the day

Won’t succeed

In landing

On me

The closet’s need cleaning

The bathroom’s a wreck

The morning’s had it’s run

Who’s going to use

Your shampoo now

Who’s going to call

Who’s going to call me out

One day you’ll go

And won’t come back

I’ll make myself

A dinner

For one

One chop

One bit’

Of vegetable

A tv tray

A sad old chair

With the stuffing

Coming
Out

One good cut

And it’d be

The gutted center

Of a lived-out

Living room

A car pulls up

I get a thrill

But it’s the girl

Across the street

Coming home

From a date

Takes more

To get my ears up now

Young hope

Buoys different

I go for walks

I take my time

The house looks the same

When it pulls up

On my side

Houses have a way

Of greeting you

Especially

When they’d rather

You kept walking

One day you’ll go

And I’ll go too

I’m just not sure where

A mailbox

A letter

A stamp I forgot to buy

I’ll buy a cane

That I don’t need

To present myself

In a way I need to

And start

Over

Again

I’ll watch my walk

I’ll hold my words

I’ll tell myself

I’ve still got time

Now, Mary

There’s no reason

For the day

To repeat

There’s a break

In my voice

When I say your name

There’s a break

That stops me

Stops me

Short