I always take pictures on the day they leave.
To remember the strange feeling
of loss and freedom
in a single moment.
Funny, how the sky is always bursting with blue
and the birds chirping harmoniously.

As if even nature is trying to remind me
to look outside myself.
"I'm right here", it screams.

It tells me
I musn't look far to come across artistry.
The cardinals, the bluebirds
The vibrant hydrangeas lining the streets.

The black-eyed susans are liberated and free,
and so am I if I wish to be.