What Time Left Behind

A Four family house, all white with a trim of red;

stain glassed windows and steps of concrete stone.

A house no longer a home is now a picture frame

where memories still live

and now it stands there alone.

The scent of nana’s cooking still lingers/an aroma

I can smell from all those Sunday’s past where we

use to all gather just to inhale the natural perfume of her soul.

I still see her in that kitchen feeding our appetites

and nourishing our hearts with love.

Now I smile as I hear that childhood laughter/the way

we played on the open streets of innocence

with no fear threatening the air we breathed.

I remember before times got wild how fulfilling it was

just being a child and growing with so much strength

surrounding me; a strength that still holds the foundation

to a home that will always house

the values of family and support.

Decades have now passed as growth has brought change

And loss but pieces of our hearts forever beat

in empty hallways with long lasting echoes of warmth

comfort and care.

A four family house, old, abandoned and condemned

now stands there alone. I still see pieces of my youth

sliding down the banister; pieces of family survival

still bonding in strength and rising with love. It is empty now

and no longer maintained but there will always

remnants of what time left behind.