There’s a door to my heart
You can open to find
A house full of rooms
And a clock that will chime
Ticking backwards, each second
‘Til the day that I die
Dirt stains on the carpet
From the souls that have trodden
A piano; out of tune
From the use that it’s gotten
Unlike the china in the cabinet
That has never been touched
I’m saving it for something special
I’m just not sure what
My hands trembled
As I called out, “Come in!”
I hoped you wouldn’t notice
The mess I’m living in
See, it seemed rather tidy
If one looked at the surface
But you walked toward the closet
Which made me nervous.
It was there I had stuffed
All my clothes and my clutter
Old photographs; trophies that read
“Daughter”-“Sister”-“Friend”-“Lover”
On the floor in the corner
A pack of gum I had stolen -
A test I had cheated on -
A list of words I had spoken
Embarrassed, I quickly shut the door.
An armchair in the living room
Leather, green and worn
I invited you to sit there
And awaited your scorn
But you sat there quietly
Started humming a song
Of words so familiar
I had forgotten for long
I offered a spare key
But you wanted the original
I hesitated, saying
“First let me clean up this mess I made
You must be disgusted
I feel so ashamed”
You smiled and looked to that closet door
“Child, I’ve already done it for you.”
I walked to the door
I opened it to find
A little baby boy
Under a star shining bright
The fireplace was crackling
That’s where you disposed
Of the things that at one time
Knew my heart as their home.
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