It’s just you and I, my friend.”
- Bruce Springsteen
Four years have passed since you died,
and I would be lying if I said I don’t
look for you in the corner of the room,
but the house is always empty. I listen
to I’m on Fire and Secret Garden
and I smell your aftershave and feel
your cheek against mine. I’d be
lying if I said I didn’t replay your
voicemails daily. Your voice claims
you’ll see me later, and I choose
to believe that you will. When I die,
I know you’ll be there. Perhaps
disguised as Peter, you’ll lead me
to a gate, and just as in life, you’ll
deceive me, and as I am now,
I’ll be ruined for eternity.
--
Cat Dixon is the author of What Happens in Nebraska (Stephen F. Austin University Press, 2022) along with six other poetry chapbooks and collections. She is a poetry editor with The Good Life Review. Recent poems published in Thimble Lit Mag, Poor Ezra’s Almanac, and Moon City Review.