I have been happy, my dear,
To loan you half the house
Rent-free and furnished
As best I could.
You have been a good
Tenant, all in all
Quiet, yet comfortably there
Tapping friendly on the wall.
But I hear
You have outgrown the place
And are packing up to move.
Well, I will miss
The sweet proximity.
But we will keep in touch.
There are bonds, my dear,
That reach beyond a block
Or a mile or a hemisphere
Born of much love and labor.
I approve the move
And gladly turn from landlady
To neighbor.
--Carol Lynn Pearson
