I still miss you in tides
Do you think of me too?
I was lost at sea
For months
On end
I was engulfed
By the storm
I swallowed only
Saltwater
Losing you was
Nothing if not turbulent
But over time I
learned to ride
The waves
Of waking up without you
And not knowing who to call
And the complete oxymoron
Of wanting to both shred and safeguard
Each memory
Until eventually one day
I reached
Still waters
Now
I wake up to sunrises
And silence is my friend
And I don’t long for you anymore
On cold nights
But once in a while
When I stumble
Upon old photographs
Of us
The moon will tug
On my heartstrings and
I can still feel
The tides and
It catapults me back
To the way
You traced hearts
With our names in them
On the fogged up glass windows
Of our 8th floor apartment
And the way your mom and I
Would laugh
At your baby photos
And wonder if our kids
Would look like you
And I know there’s no going back now
We’re sailing in different oceans
And you’re no longer
My compass
But I do wonder
When the sky is clear and
The moon is full
Do you ever feel the tides?
Do you think of me too?
-H.
