The New Same Goodbye

by RP Verlaine

Even with tears

larger than

the guilty rain,

to say goodbye

with faint praise

or skywriting

a particular moribund

thought of love’s

expiration date

miles high . . .

something will be lost.

Whispered kisses,

indiscreet postcards,

videos where faces

framed and lost

become you;

the director saying cut!

To all the pieces

of my heart left

not a particular

worthy gift

I might add/subtract

for our new goodbye.

A Casablanca ending

to remember how

careless time extends

all that was

walking to the airplane

you say that only

new beginnings

have no end.

Rp Verlaine lives in New York City. He has an MFA in creative writing from City College. He taught in the New York Public schools for many years.
His first volume of poetry, Damaged by Dames & Drinking, was published in 2017 and another, Femme Fatales, Movie Starlets & Rockers, in 2018. A set of three e-books titled Lies From the Autobiography vol 1-3 were published from2018 to 2020. His newest book, Imagined Indecencies, was published in February of 2022.

It's well known that an artist becomes more popular by dying, so our pal Steve Cartwright is typing his bio with one hand while pummeling his head with a frozen mackerel with the other. Stop, Steve! Death by mackerel is no way to go! He (Steve, not the mackerel) has a collection of spooky toons, Suddenly Halloween!, available at Amazon.com.    He's done art for several magazines, newspapers, websites, commercial and governmental clients, books, and scribbling - but mostly drooling - on tavern napkins. He also creates art pro bono for several animal rescue groups. He was awarded the 2004 James Award for his cover art for Champagne Shivers. He recently illustrated the Cimarron Review, Stories for Children, and Still Crazy magazine covers. Take a gander ( or a goose ) at his online gallery: www.angelfire.com/sc2/cartoonsbycartwright . And please hurry with your response - that mackerel's killin' your pal, Steve Cartwright.