The obituary is three paragraphs long

The obituary is three paragraphs long,

tucked between a car ad and the weather.

She gave me a C- on that essay about the lake,

drawing a heavy red circle around a comma

and writing 'lazy' in the margin.

I can still see the ink bleeding into the pulp,

a sharp, arterial strike against my ego.

She didn't want me to be comfortable;

she wanted me to stop hiding behind

the easy words.

I’m still trying to find a better way

to say I’m sorry she’s gone.