Empty Nest

Give me a medal as I wait here alone.
You see an empty nest, but look again,
lollipop-shadows play in my hushed home.
 
A rusted toy soldier guards the discarded den,
I blinked too long and my warriors were gone.
You see an empty nest, now look again
 
at blue-tacked walls where creased posters still hang.
I managed the mundane, absorbed their pain
but blinked once more and my warriors were gone.
 
Saggy sofa base-camp for giggling games
before teenage fingers pressed our door bell.
I managed the mundane, absorbed their pain
 
until needed no more. Now a stale Lynx smell
clings to debris of a fragmented clan,
in the pristine house with a silent door bell.
 
I’ve become white-noise, not part of their plans,
so give me a medal as I wait here alone,
in the debris of a fragmented clan,
while their shadows play, in my hushed home.

Carol Hilton

If you have any thoughts on this poem, Carol Hilton  would be pleased to hear them.