Morning Grief

Waking up alone

I didn’t know what to say

To this empty house

* * *

I smelled your pillow

A faint whiff of you remains

Olfactory ghost

* * *

Listened with cupped ear

But I did not hear your steps

Pattering on tile

* * *

No coffee scents waft

From kitchen to greet morning

Your side of bed … cold

* * *

Heart lurches in chest

Sleep addled brain remembers

You left me for him

* * *

Memories trickle

Those salty remembrances

Of happier times

* * *

Woken by a kiss

Of spaces filled with laughter

When this was a home

* * *

Now must I decide

Do I continue to strive

Or roll back over