The house you grew up in, it falls apart at the seams.

Despair covers the walls like asbestos.

Rage tunnels the walls like termites.

The contractors called—

there’s too much damage.

They can’t fix it.

They advise you to knock it down, 

tear it down,

salvage from the wreckage,

But how can you salvage when

the damage can’t be separated from the memories?

You can’t sift the good from the bad.

It’s all woven together like the tapestry your father hung in the foyer when you were ten.

Your childhood home is a wreck.

One day, 

you might find the strength to demolish it.

One day,

you might find the strength to stand in the foundation of who you became with 

nothing but a quiet soul.

Yushan C. is an emerging Canadian author who writes on nostalgia, regret, identity and optimism. Just about everything, really. She is currently based in Edmonton, AB, but will be moving to Vancouver, BC to start an undergraduate degree. She can be found on Instagram at yschou98 and on Tumblr at wanderer.writer.poet .