"Hello"

An undercurrent of voices 

courses through the apartment, 

drowned out by the running water 

that gargles their meaning.

Hundreds chime in, thrilled

to have a medium 

to convey the words they so want to impart,

"I love you, I miss you, find me, hello!, 

there you are, I knew you would come, 

I have been waiting."

Tears course down my cheeks 

as suddenly as my breath comes, 

Surprising, unconscious, unstoppable,

I put down the onion knife 

and know that these tears do not sting,

but are droplets of uninhibited joy; 

one of the voices has passed through me and he loves me, 

someone I miss daily, 

and he hums to me, "All that matters is happiness" 

and I put my palms out, 

asking for one more breath of "hello" 

before I know my grandfather in all but blood 

has rejoined the cascade of voices 

traveling to touch us ever so softly 

if only we can listen closely.