Boxes of erasers and paperclips
sugar packets strewn, pens and tissues
a dried carnation, creased store lists
the dusty surface cluttered with breath mints
pennies tossed in as afterthoughts
his upright dresser entrusted to his daughter
I am the emptier, the one who will empty
each drawer, my back aches from the bend
and pull of bottom drawers, I peel back
the years, find a calendar from 1958
a branch still sticky with sap, an eye mask
to help him sleep, a bag of licorice,
a toothpick, all boxed and bagged
the dresser empty, dusted, polished
even the alarm clock has stopped blinking.
Mimi Moriarty
Voorheesville, NY