One Lives There Still Poem by JDC LeDrew

We left many things behind
The day we left the farm,
But mostly things were packed away
And neatly wrapped, secured from harm.

I stayed up late to admire the boxes
Stacked to the ceiling in every room,
And stilled myself come break of dawn
To strain and load and broom.

I saw all of our possessions
Neatly folded away,
While memories our life spent there
Spilled out in disarray.

I found it impossible to comprehend,
It did not easily register in my mind,
That this season of our life was done.
We converged upon an ending time.

At midnight, a family member arrived
Who in the shadows shared our lot.
He dashed from a crevice near the hearth
As if to say, 'Forget me not.'

As he disappeared among the boxes
I counseled him that he stay free,
That he should consider and abandon us,
Our retreat to the city...

And wisely choose this, his native place.
Choose to dwell in grace removed from strife,
So at least one family member stayed
To live the country life.

Upon return he paused before me,
Passed a paw through his whiskers, contemplating the thrill -
Then took my advice and dove for the hole in the hearth,
And so one lives there still.