You Go Away

Written By Amanda Barusch
Man walking alone against a fluorescent blue background.

Image thanks to www.bfabp.com

You go away

and the clock

ticks

louder and

slower.

You go away

and I make deals

with myself: No wine

tonight. Maybe dessert

instead.

You go away

and I leave

the radio

on

just

to hear voices.

I enjoy grocery shopping

more than usual.

In fact, you might say

that I stockpile food.

You go away

and I talk with

strange men.

Women too,

in ways that

once felt familiar.

You go away

and the house

creaks

in the dark.

Sometimes the phone

rings

only there's no one

to answer

when

you go away.

Amanda Barusch

Amanda Barusch has worked as a janitor, exotic dancer, editor, and college professor. She lives in the American West, where she spends as much time as possible on dirt paths. She has an abiding disdain for boundaries and adores ambiguity. Amanda has published eight books of non-fiction, a few poems, and a growing number of short stories. Aging Angry is her first work of creative non-fiction. She uses magical realism to explore deep truths of the human experience in this rapidly changing world.

Previous

Road Rage
Next

Hers