Micaela Williams

I HAVE FAILED

PUBLISHED IN FOLIO 2025: VOL. 40.

Missing you turns
all sweet things sour.

Your acidic absence
singes the tip of my tongue.

Any memory we shared
has a black blanket over it

in the mirrors of my mind.
I try to see myself

through your eyes and snarl
at the image like a dog

that makes an enemy
out of its own reflection.

I hate the parts of you
that I see in myself

and I hate myself
for trying

to love them anyways.
I guess this means

I have tried to love you too,
& unfortunately

for the both of us,
I have failed.

Micaela Williams is a poet and essayist living in Baltimore, Maryland. She received her MFA in Poetry and Publishing Arts from the University of Baltimore. Her chapbook, “Cut the Lights,” was published in 2022. When not writing, she’s hanging out with her husband and her two cats, Chunky and Cyber.