Back To Life.
Entry for "Somewhere Between Here And There" Challenge.
I wasn’t planning to cry today.
Just scrolling,
moving from one room to another
with my phone in my hand
and nothing in particular on my mind.
Maybe I was going to eat.
Maybe I forgot.
The app showed up again.
CapCut.
The one with the template
that makes faces move.
You upload a photo
and it breathes for a moment.
Eyes blink.
Lips shift.
It feels like something sacred
and a little bit wrong.
I used a picture of Daddy.
The one where he looks like himself.
Not younger, not altered,
just him.
Still.
And then not still.
He blinked.
His mouth twitched like he was about to say my name.
I watched the whole thing
too many times.
Then cut it short,
just before the face changed too much.
Before it turned into something
borrowed from someone else.
I kept the part
where it looked the most like him.
Not perfect.
But close enough to hurt.
I cried.
No drama.
No sobbing.
Just tears I didn’t ask for
rolling down
until I had to sit on the floor
and stay there awhile.
There’s a spider in the corner again.
I didn’t see it, I felt it.
That feeling,
like eyes you can’t name.
I turn my head,
and there it is.
Still.
Waiting.
I don’t kill it.
I don’t move.
The hallway is quiet.
The phone has gone black in my hand.
I’m still standing
between one breath and the next,
between a man who isn’t here
and a machine pretending he is.
Something might be burning in the kitchen.
Or maybe there’s nothing at all.
Maybe I just forgot
what I came in here for.
About the Creator
Cathy (Christine Acheini) Ben-Ameh.
https://linktr.ee/cathybenameh
Passionate blogger sharing insights on lifestyle, music and personal growth.
⭐Shortlisted on The Creative Future Writers Awards 2025.
Keep reading
More stories from Cathy (Christine Acheini) Ben-Ameh. and writers in Poets and other communities.
Rachel Reviews: The Spiral Archive by Pieter Hendrik
It's difficult for me to know where to start with a review of this book as it was, for me, an entirely unique experience and one that I'll probably never have again. I don't want that to be interpreted as unenjoyable but it has left me scratching my head a little and ruminating on its content, its themes and its characters.
By Rachel Deeminga day ago in BookClub
Comments (14)
Digital technology does bring people together, but it is not the same, indeed. I sensed the lack in this well-expressed poem.
Cathy—this poem absolutely floored me. It’s so vulnerable, haunting, and beautiful. The image of your father moving—just for a second—hit me harder than I expected. Wherever he is, I truly believe he sees this. Thank you for sharing something so personal. I hope this piece wins the challenge you submitted it to. And I can’t wait to feature it on my Threads account. It deserves to be seen.
Wow, Cathy, your poem is beautiful in so many ways. I felt the stillness. I felt the sadness. You are quite the gifted poet; congratulations on your top story!!!
Wow. This is hauntingly beautiful.
Big hug 🤗
Why I am sad after reading this?
This poem quietly shattered me. The way grief lingers in technology, in silence, in rooms we forget why we entered—it's haunting and beautiful. You captured the ache of almost, the flicker of presence in absence. Thank you for putting this feeling into words so precisely.
This is HeartBreaking
Well said
your poem was exactly how I feel whenever I think of my dad, which is often. I hope you heal. Always remember that he hasn't left you, not completely. One day, you'll feel a small tap on your shoulder. That's him saying how proud he is of you. Congratulations on TS
Oh my goodness. I can't imagine how heartbreaking that must be. I thought your poem was amazing. Wishing you all the best.
Sending you a big hug! So sorry 4 your loss...
🫂
This is heartbreaking, Cathy. Sending you so much love ♥️