Roadkill

Goodbyes aren’t always clean.

Sometimes they get caught beneath the tires
While driving too fast
On a road we forget we were even on

Goodbyes don’t slow down,
They don’t swerve,
They don’t stop

They’re just a flicker of red taillights.

One moment you’re there

And then

You’re not.

And I can’t help but find myself
Standing by the shoulder
Trying to name the shape
Of what’s been lost

For grief
Isn't always
A funeral

Sometimes
It’s a stain on the asphalt
That no one bothers
To clean
Becuase nature will take care of it anyway

But still,
I kneel beside
With my hand pressed to the earth

And I whisper
Your name

Because even broken things we lost
Deserve
To be remembered