So Many Things I Owe To Carla Poem by Andy Barrette

So many things I owe to Carla
that I cannot know
because I cannot count
all of the ways that I have grown.
It used to be that, in the cold,
I'd gladly keep her warm,
for my own sense of winter comfort
seemed to be the norm.
Now, I could not tell you
why I always feel so cold
or why my sense of certainty
has since decreased ten-fold.
I wish I knew what Carla did
that shattered all my pride
or what she took that's left me
with this emptiness inside.

(08/22/09)