Retreat

Pushing back the old door
creates an arc of dust;
and there it sits once more:
your universe at dusk.

Stepping in the half-light
on boards you used to own,
you know it isn't right
to call this house your home.

Searching through the toy box
unearths so many things
that hold you in their bones:

yo-yo like a coiled snake,
a telephone that rings
your teddy bear awake,

spinning tops and spark guns -
that emery and flint!

Smiling at your loved ones
reveals the very end

those memories postpone.