the house was too big
too empty

it echoed
her loneliness

with each reverberation
louder was the pain

it shook her
like a child shaking his jacks

before he throws them
to the ground

she rattled about
bouncing off walls

and bumped her head
a time or two

but nothing changed
the house did not grow smaller

or her emptiness lessen
and she wondered

if it even mattered
how large the house is

to people
who are alone