I watched a stranger walk into your house today…

And though I knew it was coming, it was still so hauntingly surreal.

We spoke of retirement and your big move 6 months ago. Where has the time gone?

We watched you make the last minute repairs for your curb appeal, and when the sale sign went up we weren’t surprised.

We were, however, taken aback by how speedy the process was from start to finish. It seemed like only a couple weekends of visitors before the U-Haul arrived.

We watched you loading and arranging with every intention of popping over to say our good-byes, and express our gratitude and well wishes. But the day got away from us, as days often do, and suddenly you and the truck were gone.

Nearly two decades of comings and goings etched into our regular routine, done!

We weren’t close, but we had some nice conversations now and again. We could count on each other the way that good neighbors do.

Your successor has some pretty big shoes to fill albeit unbeknownst to him or her.

I guess we were in a little bit of denial, thinking there would simply be more time… until there wasn’t…

And now it’s too late to say good-bye.

©Dani Heart

6-23-2019