Old Walls
Stacy W. Julin
I drove myself to
our old house today
to look at my past.
There is a park behind it,
where there used to be hills
of grass
to lay behind
and fire toy guns
at each other.
I parked facing north
in a carefully chosen space,.
mostly hidden
by the large green dumpster.
They were sitting out
in the backyard
with their baby on a blanket,
spread out under my apple tree.
I don’t like them still
for paying less than the house
was worth,
arguing the details
of my memories.
And admit how much I enjoyed
knowing the secrets.
Watching them there,
not belonging.
Oblivious to what really lives
in the crawl space.
They were bare-legged,
eating their sandwiches
3 feet above
the decomposed body
of my Shetland Sheepdog.
The house
without me,
won’t tell them.
Stacy W. Julin is the author of two poetry chapbooks, A Pebble Thrown in Water, published by Tiger’s Eye Press, and Visiting Ghosts and Ground from Finishing Line Press (published under the name Stacy W. Dixon). Her work has been published in Tiger’s Eye, Oyster River Pages, Pirene’s Fountain, Sweet Tree Review, and Word Fountain.. She lives in Utah with her three sons.