Children playing outside
It's November.
"Different" in red
television flashing, blaring
Internet calling email
A brief note from an old friend
Technical question impersonal
Driving keeps me alive
Humming engine soothes,
There is no replacement
For a significant other

Now it's Christmas
Again as it was last year
Unnaturally warm
Day by day I go
Each moment is a placebo
An artificial extension
Of an other who is not here.