A poem.
I felt a pang on hearing
Her complaint, after
Years of coming to this place
She still felt like an outsider.
I tried to tuck her in beside me
Bring her along with me
But in the end it was too hard to stay:
The distance.
That gap remained between us
No feedback or at least a little warmth
To advise that ice was indeed thawing
In the space I carved out for her.
She told me she didn’t believe in making an effort
People could take her as they found her
It took me a while to work out, concretely
What that meant.
Impenetrable moods, one word replies
That I laughed off, being ‘the chatty one’
Unsure if something could to be righted
Or if it was just where she found herself on the day.
So I became used to reaching out
To no hand waiting
No sign that the effort was appreciated
A blank wall of indifference.
