Last Meal
Stacy Julin
That last meal as a family was difficult.
He struggled to swallow the food
down between sobs.
The kids were quiet.
He said it was the best meal
he had ever eaten,
but it was over for me.
Twenty years of sadness and cheating.
I admit my heart ached for him,
but after he left,
nothing would stop me now
from locking that door.
This poem was written at a very hard time in my life. Now, when I look back on it, I'm really proud of myself. I taught my children something very important. No one deserves to be treated badly, and you are strong enough to leave.
STACY JULIN'S work has been published in Oyster River Pages, Pirene’s Fountain, Sweet Tree Review, Southern Quill, and Word Fountain, and has been nominated for The Pushcart Prize. She is the author of three poetry chapbooks, A Pebble Thrown in Water (Tiger’s Eye Press, 2010), Visiting Ghosts and Ground (Finishing Line Press, 2018), and Things We Carry (Finishing Line Press, 2024). She lives with her family at the base of the beautiful Wasatch Mountains.