There is hardly a worse phrase
Or a worse feeling
Than day one

It is heavy, like a rock
swallowed whole;
An interrupted clock
Re-wound, reset  
For what seems the
Hundredth time

Day one since…
It echoes in the mind,
A painful peal reverberating
Through the cavernous halls
Of the heart –
Newly empty

Empty, save the wine
Spilled by guests
Who left too soon