By: Coral Kendall
I mean that I am searching for dad’s scent
in someone else’s clothes
When I say my boyfriend reminds me of my father
I mean that I never, not once
had a crush on a boy I didn’t think I could get
but that never meant they would stay
When I say my boyfriend reminds me of my father
I mean I’ve never told either of them how
these tears are cloaked in their name
How the pain had caused me to wonder if
I’m wrong for them or just wrong with them
When I say my boyfriend reminds me of my father
I mean I’ve never had a better metaphor
for someone who feels everything all at once
and still doesn’t care one single bit more than those two
When I say my boyfriend reminds me of my father
I mean the way my love for him makes me lonely like
the time I had no more love left to give
to someone who’d do nothing with it
When I say my boyfriend reminds me of my father
I mean sometimes when he kisses me
I start to cry because he’s the one still here
He holds me and I hear screaming in my ears,
and I’ll never know who said goodbye first
When I say my boyfriend reminds me of my father
I mean I don’t want to let down anyone else I care about
When I say my boyfriend reminds me of my father
I don’t mean that they’re the same, but I’m afraid
that’s what my love does to people in the end
Coral Kendall is a Senior at Lake Taylor High School who has been taking classes at The Muse Writers Center for almost 2 years now. She has poems published with Esthetic Apostle and From Whispers To Roars Magazine. If you are interested in seeing more of her work, you can contact her through her Instagram account; Cori.k12.