Forever Home (a poem)
Our final home,
more than a house on a street.
It was the place we could be
you and me, together, forever.
Our final home,
more than a house on a street.
It was the place we could be
you and me, together, forever.
Prevailing winds wrapped the flag
tightly around its pole.
All that could be discerned
were the stripes…
everything is here
for but a moment
like a whisper
half-spoken
nearly existing
vanishing
in the soft light
of a new day
Having moved on, I remained
caught between obligation and fear.
Worn, weary hands now empty.
Inspiration sifted, removed by the wind.
Remember the ones
you passed in the hall
never stopping to talk
or know them at all?
The awkward kid
who didn’t fit in
tried to make friends
but just couldn’t win?
Do you think it’s really so simple,
that everything is just black or white?
Pitting your morals against us,
it’s not a question of who’s wrong or right.
You cast judgment without understanding,
while your foundation is crumbling away.
Believing you’re walking above us,
when your morals are deep in decay.
Obligations and desires compete for my time
but are beaten down
when exhaustion enters the ring.
I wish I had spoken
one simple, kind word.
It may well have been
the only one heard.
Now it’s much too late.
Life goes on without.
Memories will fade
but regrets they do not.
My mom used to write letters at the end of each year, to keep friends and family up to date on the happenings in our family.
I hadn’t written any poetry in a while. So, in the middle of the night, I wrote a little update letter of my own.
I find it funny,
not in a humorous way,
that I have hope.
That I can still have hope.
…I just keep holding on.
© 2009-2026 E.L. Redwine