The wind chilled my already frozen heart,
briefly filling my hollowed soul.

Staring at the tiny boxes in the sky
Wondering what painful memories each one holds.
Secrets for the next tenant to inherit,
unknowingly, unwillingly.

Faded yellow street lines guiding
yellow taxis the same way.
That confident sense of direction,
lost on me today.

The sales clerk asked how I was
I processed her question too slowly,
Losing my opportunity to share the appropriate lie.

My feet met the ground with an awkward force,
disconnected.

Streets I’d walked a thousand times over
suddenly felt unfamiliar
as I fixated on new details
the cracks in my ribs let in new light.

A white butterfly found me.