Christine Goodman

THE HALLWAY

you

in two separate rooms

with both doors locked—

one side,

a crisis

one side,

a condolence

I am left

in the hallway

alone

I want to hug you

and hit you

but I've been detached

extracted

today life is all waldorf wallpaper

and rug runner

leading off to the

me

who decided to leave this house

because time

is sacred

I blow kisses

back to my

self

they tumble down the corridor

and turn into promises

I would keep

on a good day

but today

is not

a good day

today

I stand in a hallway

facing two doors

that stare right back

absorbing the hours, absorbing my ache

I am stuck

at an impasse

halfway between

two sides

of one person

touching neither

catching whiffs of cologne

through the bottom of the door

I know you're

on the other side

of either door

I choose

but it is not up to me

you

are the only one

who can

turn the handle

lift the latch

so I weave

poems

out of carpet fiber

and paisley

attempt

to convey

the lonely expanse of a hallway

on days like today

when you lock

your selves away

and I become bored

because I've stayed

too curious

to leave

and time doesn't seem

so

precious

after all

I can wait

and watch nothing

follow nothing

in an endless cycle of loss

wrapped in

hallway swirls

I lie down

on the dusty rug

to die a hundred times

in dreams

of rooms

with fireplaces

and laughter

and your sweet, sweet breath!

(Originally posted November 3, 2008)

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