First you realize
there's no one in bed with you.
You discover
no dirty socks on the floor,
and you only have to boil water
for one cup of coffee.
You tell all your girlfriends
you're really happy he's gone.
He couldn't commit, anyway.
They agree, and arrange it
so you eat out every night that week.
Next you check the Personals ads.
You don't answer any of them yourself,
of course.
But you save the address.
You might want to submit one of your own.
You agree to have coffee
with any man around your age
who seems intelligent.
Who knows what could happen?
You go to sleep
thinking about your former lover
and walk up most mornings
thinking about him and crying.
After a month
you put his picture away
and only cry
when you think about the poems
you wrote for him.
(c) 1992
Lynn Cohen
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/first-you-realize/
