my own world does not become no-man’s land with the falling
of the words “honey I’m sorry”.
No phone call has the power to splinter
a soul.
Lists of company names do not burst around me,
And his, like a flash bang, is never called.
A too proud but crumpling heart is not masked
by a firm handshake or a heavy pat on the back.
There is no undisclosed “I love you” “I need you” “don’t go”
or “don’t cry”.
There is no watching a mother’s world become shattered glass
on kitchen tile--
there is no collateral damage.
No shrapnel in the legs, chest, the head
from the sudden eruption of miles in between people
whose skin has always touched.
Cicada do not shriek goodbyes into a hollow morning.
The brain does not ring for mercy when the truth is too loud,
too inevitable.
The heart doesn’t shudder when the voice at the other end of the phone sounds heavy, sounds tired.
It does not reach out through the speaker to hold the body it belongs to
and tell them they are strong enough for this.
For the unknown.
Because in a universe where we do not know change,
We do not know fear.