my daughter says being gone
is the worst after i say gone
to explain the hibachi place
that always let her feed the two koi
name them coral and sparkle
has closed for good
i was afraid
i’d have to define gone which lives
in me as knots with time
swelled on either side
but in real time
i saw her get it
the sign gone the newspaper
on the windows now already aging
how we all grieve as though
by sheer will we could’ve been
everywhere with everyone
all the time
do you realize how brave we are
how well we do
each day knowing
all the tenses will change