Things I Didn't Notice I'd Lost (Until It Was Too Late)

by Sarah Jane Justice

a button fallen from a threadbare string

punished by gravity

for a lack of function

cherished

for the purely decorative nature

that allowed it

  to drop

a coin I once called lucky

as a joke

while not quite joking

a notebook without writing

fresh pages determining the only loss

is what it could have been

but never was

the sound of a voice

one that once stretched me out

on the need to hear it

one that sprung out at me from any verbal backdrop

one I held inside my head

now fallen from between my memories

escaped from recognition

            and gone

BIO: Sarah Jane Justice is a multi-disciplinary writer and performer. Her poetry and short fiction have been published by outlets such as Hawk & Cleaver, Capsule Stories, Midway Journal, and Eerie River Publishing. She has won numerous awards in spoken word, including performing at the Sydney Opera House as a national finalist in the 2018 Australian Poetry Slam. She has also been nominated for a Pushcart Prize in short fiction, created an ekphrastic poetry/photography exhibition, and recorded two studio albums of original music.