You,
I hope being alone is all you wanted it to be. I hope you watch the sun rise and you think of no one but yourself. I hope you still get angry at traffic jams because you have places you want to be. I hope that the sun kisses your cheek like I used to and you no longer think of me. I hope you still get Chik-fil-a and I hope you relish the mustard taste. I hope your fingers turn yellow because you smoke two packs a day, unthinkingly, and I hope you forget my name, letter by letter. I hope you find a lotion that soothes your every cut and sore. I hope you love yourself as I love you, unconditionally and unceasingly.
I hope the sunlight never catches the smudges my fingers left on your window when I drew for you. I hope your pillow doesn’t still smell like me. I hope you never pause in your work to think of the curve of my wrist, and my hands, so small and soft in yours. I hope you get a Big Gulp every now and then and you drink it down swallow by swallow, and you never choke on a memory of me. I hope you take money out from the Woodforest in Wal-Mart and the gay cashier keeps hitting on you, but you never remember that you laughed about it with me. I hope you get the mystery Lego minifigure often and you open it, and when it’s the same unicorn, you can easily repurpose its parts not thinking of me. I hope you forget that my smile widened as we kissed. I hope you see The Hateful Eight in theaters, with an empty seat on either side of you, and I hope your smile widens as mine once did. I hope you court lonelinessless and I hope it’s a better lover.
I hope that your life has a cornucopia of gluten-free breads, complete with hamburger buns, and I hope you never think of me. I hope you forget the way the sunlight fell in my hair. I hope you watch Spirited Away and I don’t cross your mind. I hope you never hear the echo of my words in the pages of Alan Moore. I hope you enter used bookshops and browse without looking for me. I hope you see stray cats without thinking about the girl who wanted to feed them. I hope you never suffer mistaking someone’s tinkering laugh for mine. I hope you never wonder at all the things I would have told you, if you had come.
I hope, with all the pieces of my heart, that you know you’re wonderful. I hope you know that every one of your eyelashes in the perfect length. I hope you know that scars build character. I hope you know your heart beats brightly. I hope you give smiles carelessly because all of us need your candescent light in our lives. I hope you forget me while remembering that someone, somewhere loved you completely. I hope you find the peace you deserve. I hope your travels are safe and always bring you home. I hope the clouds show you things I never deserved to see. I hope your work is satisfying and I hope you learn that your soul alone is good company.
I hope every time you see yourself you fall in love as I once did. I hope that the thought of me never gets the chance to steal the smile from your lips. I hope you can hear Rhiannon without tasting me in your head. I hope you dance. I hope you wake up to find you love life. I hope at the end of the day you always find you don’t regret a thing.
I hope you forget, day by day, the girl who loved you. I hope you never have cause to miss me. I hope, to keep safe your heart, that you never remember me.