Sometimes Sidewalks

Is for that special club you joined, with only a few members
And you're always hoping everyone shows up to every meeting
And gets the most out of being there
Encouragement
Is for that one guy at work
Not because you need the help,
But because you know he doesn't always make good decisions
And he has kids at home and he really needs to show up
And do well, not relapse into old patterns
Encouragement
Is for that family member that is usually doing well, but today something seems different
Because you know how well things can be when everyone gets along
And you know that a little encouragement is all that it takes
It works if you give it a chance

A lone beer can lurks beneath a fluffy green bush, awaiting redemption
A young woman reclining in a rocking chair on the porch, lights a blazing candle to ward off the bugs
A shirtless young man wipes sweat from his brow and glances around before returning back under his jacked up car
A faded ambulance rumbles past with rubbed off emblems from a city 10 hours to the south

Like red, yellow, and orange leaves falling from a great oak
You're not there
I still own the good times
The warm feelings and happy memories
What was and what could have been
What didn't happen
Not now, not ever
I'll be wearing an extra layer
Outside, in this cold, cold world

As the sidewalk ends a sole jogger dances back and forth with the white line, sometimes falling into the road
A stuttering line of cars veer over the lines in both directions to avoid the jogger
One sports car screams past with a troubled youth laughing and jeering out the open window
Along the sides, houses with neatly trimmed grass sport brown spots from the heat and lack of rain

Distance
Is the great separator
Between two once inseparable forces
Long forgotten memories of cartoons and ball
Time that has passed and won't change
Time that's correct and forever wrong
Time for something new, yet again
Time to forget
Now blended in like grass of the lawn
Now so special and perfect in every way
Now coffee and scones, alone
Now different

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