A Goodbye in January

Raised on black & white,
I’m normally no forgiver.
Besides, she’s a road walked,
a dead-end, a looking glass sliver.
To add emphasis to this,
I stand to deliver,
and just when I think there’s
nothing else I can give her–
I watch her shiver.

Artwork: ‘Your Voice’ by Joanne Nam

Tonight, Merril is the host at the d’Verse Poets Pub-Quadrille #144 Shivering. Craft a poem of 44 words exactly that uses some variation of the word “shiver.” Brrr. It’s dreadfully cold here. Hope you’ll join us.

52 responses to “A Goodbye in January”

Michele Marsh

I like the cold! Keeps the brain fresh

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Brrr. No thank you. Snuggled under blankets as I type this. Thanks for reading and commenting.
  
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  1. Michele Marsh
    
    I lived in Michigan for 3 years ! 😂
    
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John

This:

“Besides, she’s a road walked,
a dead-end, a looking glass sliver.”

Hit me as a man who is three times divorced. Call me weird!

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1. K.Hartless
  
  It was trying to understand that POV that prompted me to write this one, so I’m glad to hear it may be at least somewhat authentic. Thanks for reading and commenting, John.
  
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  1. John
    
    Your welcome! We all experience the world so differently, my interpretation may be unique…? Or not!
    
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rothpoetry

She has been doing a lot of shivering this year. The cold blasts shiver through on a regular basis. Great poem.

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you kindly, Dwight. It is true. I am hopeful for an early spring.
  
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  1. rothpoetry
    
    Me too! You are welcome!
    
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Ain

Ha! A wonderful voice to this poem, and some stunning lines…that dead-ringer couplet….wow…

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you kindly, Ain. I’m enjoying a conversational tone lately. It feels right sometimes.
  
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ben Alexander

I think words have a way with you, K.

❤
David

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Yes, they do. And I try my best to keep them at bay, too. Thank you, David.
  
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Quaranjavirus

A beautiful but sad poem.. 😦

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Yes, indeed. That cold goodbye. Thank you very much for reading and commenting.
  
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  1. Quaranjavirus
    
    You’re welcome 🙂
    
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Hobbo

You deliver!

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Ah, now I’m all pink cheeked. Thank you very much, Hobbo.
  
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  1. Hobbo
    
    😂
    
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  2. K.Hartless
    
    😊
    
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calmkate

great rhyming!

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you.
  
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writingwhatnots

Love the rhyming in this – and that line :’she’s a road walked’ – ouch!

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you. I love to rhyme, but it’s love-hate sometimes. Look, I did it again. I really appreciate your comments.
  
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Misky

Really well crafted poem.

LikeLiked by 2 people

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you kindly, Misky. Wrote it in my journal during my daughter’s piano lesson, but the second I heard shiver, I thought of give her, and so it was meant to be.
  
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  1. Misky
    
    I love it when that happens.
    
    LikeLiked by 1 person
SelmaMartin

So, you can offer her warmth. Isn’t that lovely? I like that. Who she is, I do not know but that you’re looking for something to give to her, tells me she is important to you. Lovely thought.

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1. K.Hartless
  
  She’s very important to me as she is me. If I could go to this moment, I would give this past self a glimpse of the future so that she could see how strong she was and how this was for the best. Thank you, Selma, for stopping by and engaging my poem.
  
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  1. SelmaMartin
    
    A pleasure to read your words and now that I know who she is, I like it even more. Stay sweet, and know she gets you… xoxo
    
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Tom

Very poignant words of regret on past relationships! Beautiful & bittersweet, K ❤

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K.Hartless

Thank you so much, Tom. It’s these moments that make us or break us. In this case, she was cracked, but not broken. Thanks for reading and commenting here. 💜

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Jewish Young Professional “JYP”

I like how you incorporated rhyme here. Not easy to do in a quadrille!

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thanks, JYP. Rhyme is a blessing and a curse. 😂
  
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De Jackson

What a gorgeous spill of words!

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you. 😊
  
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Björn Rudberg (brudberg)

I love what you did here… It sounds like the conversation will turn 180 degrees from what you had intended.

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Indeed. Surprise goodbyes are the worst. Thanks for dropping by and commenting here. Cheers.
  
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Paul Cannon

You sure evoke the feeling of the complexity of relationships, a powerful shiver.

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you so much, Paul. So many types of cold and reasons to shiver. I appreciate your kind comments.
  
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Kait Mauro

Hey there! Loved this poem. Glad to have stumbled across your blog! I am a writer too.

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Wonderful. Thanks, Kait. Pleased to be connected with another fellow writer. Cheers!
  
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Mish

The rhyme has a natural fit and I love the self-assured voice of the poem.

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you kindly, Mish.
  
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merrildsmith

There’s a lovely flow and unforced rhyme to this. It sums up a story we can only guess at, and a complicated relationship.

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you kindly, Merril, Sometimes it works out that way. 😊
  
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  1. merrildsmith
    
    Indeed. You’re welcome.
    
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paeansunplugged

Complicated relationship or not, this verse reaches out with its rhyming flow.

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you. 💜
  
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  1. paeansunplugged
    
    You are welcome. 💙
    
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Ingrid

I like this a lot, K. it could be interpreted in several different ways…nice ambiguity!

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1. K.Hartless
  
  Thank you, Ingrid. 😊
  
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