Everything I loved
has ended softly.
Not in thunder, not in teeth,
but in the still way
sunlight abandons a wall.

Even grief fades if you let it,
slips into something wearable –
a sweater pulled over
the sharpest parts of the day.

I’ve been teaching myself
to touch the world gently,
like fruit skin prone to bruising.
The kitchen vibrates with ghosts,
each one the color of sighs.

I keep them company
with my morning coffee,
adding cream, sugar, regrets
until it forgets it was ever bitter.

May Garner is an author and poet based out of Dayton, Ohio. She has been writing for nearly fifteen years and has been sharing her writing online for over a decade. She is the author of two poetry collections, ‘Withered Rising’ and ‘Melancholic Muse.’ Her work has appeared in Querencia Press, Cozy Ink Press, Arcana Poetry Press, Speckled Trout Review, and others. Find her work on Instagram (@crimson.hands).