The Mystery

The dried drops of liquid shit 

by the toilet near the unused brush, 

The closet holds a half dozen snowman mugs,

a clock that plays birdsong,

a vase from Spain still in the box,

decks of cards, dominoes, a puzzle,

family photos with curling corners, prayer cards.

The deadbolt is on the outside of the only door

leading to the basement/garden apartment.

Our landlord left the television on all night long

and did not like to clean.

What is left at the end of a life,

an old German Bible, her beloved grandchildren, 

now teenagers off to distant locales,

we are de facto family left to clean up.