Final Farewell

Fingertips lovingly tracing the antique spines,

All I'm doing is stalling for time.

I've stuck to the shadows,

An apparition myself.

Afraid to step into the light,

As I cannot be seen.

If I were to remain in plain sight

That would cause such a ruckus.

An absolute fright.

Now that everyone is gone, there's no danger for me.

I have only come to bid adieu,

To our beautiful home,

Which meant everything to me,

And especially to you.

.

This place? It will change.

It always does.

They'll redesign, renovate,

Not restore or rearrange.

It will cease to be simply because.

It's the way things are done.

When a place is no longer yours.

Everything changes in the long run

Signs go up, a sale is made.

When a new family has won

This place once held dear will become yet another stranger.

.

So now I've come to say my final farewell.

Understand, I'll make this clear,

I do not wish them ill,

It's just that this was our home.

It was the first place that I ever loved so.

In this frozen moment, I can smell your perfume lingering in the air.

In this moment, I can still see you descending upon the stair.

In this moment, I remember how you used to brush my hair.

Then we'd settle down into this chair...

With a book and I upon your lap.

.

I re-trace your steps now

This path so well-worn.

You would always linger here

You'd done that since long before I was born.

Now I look around for any tangible signs of your presence.

Anything at all,

Some lingering proof of your existence,

A reminder of our time.

All I see are dust motes floating in the sun,

Memories of my childhood shimmering all around.

The heady scent of old books fills the air,

This room is replete with ghosts

Yet they utter not a sound.

.

Fables, fairy tales, encyclopedias too,

Gazing at me in such wonder,

Each tome so beautifully bound.

Every volume stands as a reminder,

To how tightly our hearts can expound.

As the memories pull me asunder,

I yearn for my cherished days with you.

There came a time when your skin began to take on the appearance of these well-loved pages,

Looking back now, it feels I'm losing you in stages.

You were always full of stories,

Recited to me on many an occasion.

You brought the words to life,

How they rose up off the pages.

.

You'd collected these tomes and tales,

So cherished throughout all the ages.

I loved every one, but the story of us was my most favorite of all.

It's the most treasured one I'll ever recall.

Now I reminisce of those days long ago,

Every aspect of our lives.

They all played out in one way or another in this very room.

It was in this place where my love of the written word began to bloom.

.

Now there's footsteps on the stairs,

They're neither yours nor mine.

There's someone moving in here.

It will be changed now for all time.

So, I say my final goodbye.

It is time that I should go.

I cannot linger here,

For they can never know.

.

So I fade into the walls,

Disappearing into the day.

Will we meet again?

I can only wish it to be so.

For now, there are just these places of our past,

Filled with all these fleeting memories.

The retention of your essence,

And the spirit that is me,

I will hold on for as long as I can,

Fighting hard to make them last,

Until every blessed place is gone,

Our once beloved spaces become recast anew.

With the awakening of each new dawn

I fear I'm slipping farther away from you.

~

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