Empty Boxes
I used a lot of empty boxes from the ABC store to vacate one
house into another. They were just the right size for me to carry,
couldn’t make them too heavy for lifting. I had some orange
plastic milk crates that were perfect for all my poetry files.
I was downsizing my house, kept all the bird books,
Mary Oliver, signed copies, the ones friends had written.
Gave the rest to the library in hopes of updating their collection.
I think they used them in the library book sale.
Some boxes had dividers which made them good for moving
small knick-knacks like the Hummel collection and artwork.
Used pages from “The Independent” for wrapping. Gradually,
the stack on the hearth became the line along the new living room wall.
The last became first: unpacked the bathroom and then the kitchen.
Next followed the books because I knew where they would go.
Slowly, the line along the wall dwindled to one box of items
I could not let go of like the picture of us at the Hotel Peabody opening.
Maybe it’s time to empty that box.
Green Silk Journal
Spring 2023
