365 DAYS

Words and Art by Elena Ceja 

It’s been 365 days without you, missing you and accepting that all the days that follow will be like this, knowing that the days will add up, and farther and farther will be the last time I saw you, spoke to you, hugged you, saw your eyes, squeezed your hand. It’s been 365 days of remembering you with so much love. I want the world to know you—if only talking about you didn’t make me cry. Three hundred sixty five days of wishing you would visit in my dreams, hoping this was all a dream, and waking up to your phone call, your voice on the other end. 300 and 65 days I am reminded you are no longer here when I hear someone call out “papí,” see a man with a sombrero, hear whistling, or soccer on TV. 3 hundred 65 days without you here with me. It’s been the hardest 365 days of my life.