I look toward the bar
And see you standing there
With short gray hair and glasses
Shocked at the sight of you
I quickly look away
Thinking I've imagined you
But when I turn back around
You are still there
Not moving an inch
How can this be
You are supposed to be down below
With your beloved parents
And yet here you are
Gracing me with your presence
I have the sudden urge to approach you
To say hello
To give you a hug I've been yearning for
But then you turn your face toward me
And that's when I realize that it isn't you
But a stranger that resembled you in the distance
Oh how my eyes deceive me
Into thinking you are still here
When you are nowhere to be found
Perhaps this is a sign
But I wonder what it means
To think you are standing there
When it's not really you
Written November 15, 2022
© 2022 by Lena Kovadlo. Use with permission only.