Davis Brothers Moving Company:

you found the edge of the tape 
as I sat on the floor 
surrounded by cardboard boxes 

labeled 
"kitchen" and 
"dining room" and 
"peanut butter" for some reason 

we made piles 
on our cracked linoleum floor 
stained from years of coffee 

and the mud you dragged in on your boots 
you refused to take off 

"take" and "leave"

the take pile still far too big 

full of sweaters you insisted you still wore 
and my rain boots from the year 
I fell in love with the color orange 

that was the year I ate 
over 400 clementines 
you kept track 

and you switched from cigarettes 
to cigars 
for the "aesthetic" 

in the leave pile
there were mainly socks 

we had a lot of socks 

all filled with holes 
from that one time we moved our dresser 
up to the attic 

so I had room for my sewing machine 
that also found its way to the leave pile 

you were collecting pictures off the shelf 
you made when you decided you wanted to be a handyman 
before you remembered you were terrible at it 

you placed them on top of the sweaters 
I had just folded 

framed collages 
of weird things we found in old magazines 
that we stole from the gas station you used to work at 

the cupboards were still open 
a bad habit you have 

the inside still had drips of green paint 
from when I was inspired by HGTV 
and your leftover art supplies 

and filled with the two sardine cans 
you promised to make into 
earrings for me 

we labeled each cardboard box
"sweaters" and 
"shoes" and 
"sewing" because I couldn't give it up 

and loaded them into the back 
of your 2007 blue-gray 
Toyota Tacoma 
that you bought on a whim 

not realizing it was standard transmission
which you didn't know how to drive

"pictures" 
"sardines (future jewelry I promise)" 
"bedside table" 

and a crate of clementines in the back seat 
next to your box of cigars 
naturally 
even though you didn't like them 

we taped one key 
the one you scratched your initials into 
to the underside of the doormat 

the other 
you tied around your neck 
for the aesthetic 
of course