Almost Home ~ Diane Elayne Dees

It’s dusk, and I listen to Folklore
as I return from my walk to the river.
Just as plaintive piano chords
introduce “Seven,” I see my white
garage door in the distance,
almost glowing as the sun sets
on this cloudy, chilly day.

I am almost home, and the song,
—as usual—causes tears to form,
its heartbreaking artistry forcing me
to recall vividly what home used to be.
I am the child whose house
was haunted—the little girl
who longs for someone to help
her pack her dolls and flee.

The big white door grows closer;
I am almost home, yet my destination
is another haunted house, where ghosts
from a marriage that broke my spirit
float through the pastel walls.
As I approach the gravel pathway,
I wonder, yet again—where is home?

I remove my earphones, unlock the door,
and step into the enveloping warmth
of familiar objects— and I remember
that there are indeed still beautiful things.
Home is what I choose to make it,
home is somewhere inside me--
I know that, yet even now,
I must remind myself:
I am the little girl who survived,
and I am almost home.

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Diane Elayne Dees is the author of the chapbooks, Coronary Truth (Kelsay Books), The Last Time I Saw You (Finishing Line Press), and The Wild Parrots of Marigny (Querencia Press). Her author blog is Diane Elayne Dees: Poet and Writer-at-Large.

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