Kippis

Kippis

Cheers! To the good old days:

When you gave the verdict,

That I was to stay, another was to go.

I was deemed worthy; the best fit,

So much so that you wanted in,

And then there were the first three.

Cheers! To no work and all play - 

At least, that was my role in our dynamic -

The carefree, foul-mouthed degenerate,

The constant subject of your mother's scorn,

Never good enough, not up to par,

And who'll never amount to anything worthwhile.

Cheers! To the time I was led astray

By the third in our company.

You were never the enemy

She made you out to be.

After all, on that life-changing day,

Yours were the colours that shone.

Cheers! To "come what may":

Those were our words, but I didn't think

You'd be the one to hold on to that promise.

When push came to shove,

She stayed behind, she walked away,

And you followed, right by my side.

Cheers! To your 15th birthday,

Where you provided the raw materials 

For the first three chapters of a book

I honestly never thought would be written.

Rather useless, ultimately,

And yet I am grateful nonetheless.

Cheers! To those late-night Saturdays,

Making up the entirety of that second chapter,

Throughout which you were

A constant deuteragonist.

You know what was key at its end?

Your unwavering presence; your unmistakable loyalty.

Cheers! To being stuck on replay;

Your head was easily turned

By your mother's never-ending judgement,

And so, we'd find each other at odds.

Admit it, you thought you were better than me

For the longest part of our friendship.

Cheers! To finding another way

To co-exist, or even better, to nurture

A friendship that became fundamental to me.

We both grew - sometimes separately, sometimes jointly -

Always in parallel, eventually invertedly,

Until we became each other's worst nightmare.

Cheers! I knew you'd never betray

Your lifelong dream

Of leaving all you've known behind, 

Following the path you've carved

All on your own!

That is, right after your brother did the exact same thing.

Cheers! To that vast array

Of memories we share.

No matter how hard you try,

Some things you cannot outrun.

Like your true nature, like a magician

Specialising in disappearing acts!

Cheers! To me trying to convey

The pain you've inflicted upon me.

Needlessly, undeservedly,

All because of your incessant need

To sever all ties

To the land that held you back.

Cheers! To today!

When you "keep peace" every day,

And I'm the one needing to be held back

From letting hell break loose,

From being my father's daughter,

Instead forced to keep my mouth shut.

Cheers! To never being able to repay

The kindness you've shown

By cutting me off.

Your ice-cold heart truly matches

The barren, frozen wasteland

You've come to call home.

Cheers! To this final essay,

The very least that you deserve.

As a fellow poet, you will know

To read between all these lines.

Goodbye, farewell, and good luck!

You know where you won't find me.