Clean-Up

I'm done with finals, and have only my department portfolio left. This means I must start to pack up all my belongings and leave, for the last time. This is sad.

I hate to think the only signs

that this was once my home

are holes in walls and lines of dust,

the room is now laid bare.

No proof remains of those long nights

We sat and laughed with joy,

And though these windows were my eyes,

They’re meant for others now.

Yes, coursework’s hard, no doubt of that,

The cleaning’s painful too,

But now I must, with quivering voice,

Pass on and move from here.

Oh, hardest task yet set, this long

Goodbye, wherein we must

Pretend it gives us joy to ditch

The lives we’ve learned to make.