In opposition to you leaving
by Kristina England

I found the duffle bag of clothes you stuffed
when you woke to our day on the wrong side.

It happens, but go ahead, shove off. Good luck
finding remedies in the forward motion of legs.

Look in the hallway mirror before you head out.
Witness the weight of leaving – your eyes

heavy with the lapping of water-logged buckets.
There’s bound to be a few leaks. It’s okay.

Soon the words will pool over and stream
down your cheeks in murmuring rivers

you’ll hear the splashing of language
saying, “Go back. Go back. Go back.”

Try to stop the flowing water.
Try to swim uphill through the dirge.

Kristina England resides in Worcester, Massachusetts. She is an active member of the poetry community serving on the Board of Directors for the Worcester County Poetry Association and an assistant editor for Ballard Street Poetry Journal. She also runs a local poetry workshop. Her poetry is published or forthcoming in Gargoyle, Haggard and Halloo, Nib Review, and other journals. For more on her poetry, visit kristinaengland.blogspot.com.