Baggage Claim

A poem about loss, written for workshop

Baggage Claim

I watched the same suitcase
Come ‘round and ‘round again
While I waited for you.
It was brown, tattered leather,
And long missing a wheel.
There was a tear on the side
From where you dragged
It across the driveway,
While I leaned against
The front door crying.
I did not know that
Three hours ago
You stepped off the plane
Just before takeoff,
Forsaking the suitcase,
Finding it not worth chasing.
I was not worth chasing.
The busted zipper disappeared
From my sight, left me
Wondering, what happens
To unclaimed baggage.