I Only Know

I ONLY KNOW

Departures signals not a step back,

  neither retreat into the here and now,

  nor molecules of progress shattered.

Leavings caution not of broken vows,

   neither hiding in a vacuum of defeat,

   nor paragraphs of prose scattered.

Departure bodes for miracles,

   as the winds of time oft portray.

Leaving seeks a higher register,

   notes unsung before today.

I only know that the way home is pitfall ridden,

   cast in shapes of black and gray,

   sprinkled with temptations,

   roadblocks worthy of bricklayers, mystics,

   and a chorus line of helping hands. 

I only know that most of what we say is misunderstood,

   wrapped in smiles as warm and inviting 

   as hot cocoa and homemade cherry pie,

   challenging our better sides

   and casting our fates in purgatory.

Don’t mistake the beginning for the end,

   the guardian for your keeper,

   or the apogee for the soothing beauty of the trek.

Departure is the darker side of arrival.

Leaving is part of all we erect.

I only know because I’ve been there.