My house is too heavy –

It’s filled with floors unreached,

rooms unentered;

Closets with doors unclosed

Cover clothes that won’t fit.

My house is too heavy --

It’s filled with books unread,

yet hours of lead,

with shelves that are filled

with the slumber of pills.

My house is too heavy --

It’s filled with settings for eight

when two will do,

with a yard that from inside

seems a mile wide or two.

My house is too heavy --

It’s filled with problems unresolved,

with promises unfulfilled,

with dreams untried,

with memories unblurred.

My house is too heavy --

It’s filled with plans to leave

tied to anchors unseen,

where excuses mate,

and even the dust has weight.

Edward J. Gallagher

Bethlehem, Pa.

ejg1@lehigh.edu