Complete Teardown

 “All of it” she cried  
giant sobs  
completing the freshly remodeled space  
with the addition of pent-up pain.  
 
Wrenching tears to the gods  
Of marble and backsplash  
Wails filling the room  
uncovering unfinished work.  
 
“All of it, all of it, all of it...”
Bemoaning the loss of parents too young  
of marriages that never should have been  
of youth and faith and friendship and separation  
of language and love and geography and, most acutely, that thing called hope.  
 
She swayed and mourned for it all  
as he drove away.  
She could have made him stay.  
Then again, she knew better than to rebuild around fixtures meant for a different time or a different house.  
 
R.