The Empty Streets | Teen Ink

The Empty Streets MAG

January 7, 2009
By Anonymous

I watched the traffic lights change
from green to yellow to red,
from behind my steering wheel,
from the other side of the glass.
And I drove the empty streets
that reminded me so much of
the empty hallways of your heart;
I guess I knew you weren’t coming back.
So I circled the block once more
hoping maybe we would pass
and I nearly thought we did,
but those weren’t your headlights
that I was staring at.
The slow and steady pulsing
of the biggest small town,
cars passing through lights
like my blood through valves;
missing you is like background noise,
like traffic outside my window at night.
And when I press my head to your chest
to hear the slow and steady pulsing
of your blood circling the block again,
the stars spread out before me
like city lights from atop a hill.



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This article has 78 comments.


on Oct. 9 2010 at 1:22 pm
JaimeNichole SILVER, Trenton, Michigan
5 articles 0 photos 8 comments

Favorite Quote:
Life is a lie. Reality is an illusion. And sanity is insanity in disguise.

I really enjoyed this poem. You drew me in right from the beginning with your words. I felt like I could relate and I was drawn in. I loved the imagery and comparisons used in this. Very creative. Please read some of my work, I'm really looking for feedback

on Oct. 9 2010 at 11:06 am
that is so wow. emotional impact. "missing you is like background noise,/like traffic outside my window at night." amazing

on Sep. 17 2010 at 5:23 pm
zebra.prints. BRONZE, Frisco, Texas
4 articles 0 photos 4 comments

Favorite Quote:
Even if it kills me, I'm gonna smile. :)

i <3 this. the emotion in this ppoem is captivation

on Sep. 8 2010 at 1:44 pm
Nicole93 PLATINUM, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
41 articles 0 photos 15 comments

Favorite Quote:
Sometimes the best two people to be together are the last two to realize it.

Wow! this is freakin sweet! :) nice job!

on Aug. 4 2010 at 5:52 pm
MercedesXO DIAMOND, South Easton, Massachusetts
52 articles 0 photos 280 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I realize that life is risks. It&#039;s acknowledging the past but looking forward. It&#039;s taking chances that we will make mistakes but believeing we all deserve to be forgiven.&quot; <br /> -The Dead Tossed Waves.

BEYOND AMAZING. i love this:) fantastic work and you are, without a question, a very talented writer.

i'd appriciate it if you (or anyone else reading this) would read and comment on some of my work:)

especially my poem 'Torturer of a King.' appriciated:)


on Aug. 4 2010 at 11:30 am
thezebrasgray PLATINUM, Taylorsville, Utah
46 articles 0 photos 231 comments
i love it! good work.  the metaphors are outstanding

on Aug. 4 2010 at 10:29 am
MelanieLouise PLATINUM, Plymouth, Minnesota
37 articles 0 photos 81 comments

Favorite Quote:
to live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong

very well written :) great work and if you get the chance to check out my work i would love to get your opinion! keep writing, Mel

on Aug. 4 2010 at 7:46 am
PoeticTouch GOLD, Saida, Other
11 articles 0 photos 47 comments

Favorite Quote:
Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow

i loved the way you organized your ideas...great job! check out some of my work if u can:)

on Aug. 4 2010 at 3:38 am
lizzie.rose. BRONZE, Lake Tapps, Washington
2 articles 0 photos 6 comments
it flowed very nicely, good job, (: !

on Aug. 4 2010 at 12:24 am
rawrpiranha SILVER, Godfrey, Illinois
8 articles 2 photos 9 comments

i pretty much died when i read this.

it felt like i was there. you did an amazing job.

i so wish i could write like you.


on Jul. 13 2010 at 11:44 pm
ashleykayy. BRONZE, Westmont, Illinois
3 articles 0 photos 8 comments

Favorite Quote:
its not what you look at that matters, its what you see. <br /> <br /> henry david thoreau

this is perfect.

on Jul. 13 2010 at 1:04 am
BekkahsLoopy GOLD, San Jose, California
10 articles 4 photos 32 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Keep looking forward; don&#039;t look back.&quot;<br /> &quot;To the world, you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.&quot;

it's like i was there. i love how the reader can visualize the scene perfectly. good job and keep it up!!!

on May. 30 2010 at 8:19 pm
olympian-queen, Charleston, South Carolina
0 articles 0 photos 39 comments

Favorite Quote:
Yesterday is history. Tommorrow is a mystery. And today? Today is a gift that&#039;s why they call it the present.

i liked this. i liked the flow of the poem and the way it sounded when read it aloud. JOB WELL DONE!

on May. 26 2010 at 8:46 am
cmoney1994 PLATINUM, Newark, New Jersey
20 articles 0 photos 64 comments

Favorite Quote:
Be the best you an be as you can see i try to be by writing poetry.

i agree with that your poem had a nice flow to it

on May. 9 2010 at 1:39 pm
KaiteyAmber SILVER, Meadville, Pennsylvania
6 articles 0 photos 15 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Keep your face to the sun, then you wont see a shadow.&quot; - Helen Keller<br /> &quot; In a world filled with hate, We must dare to hope.&quot; - M. Jackson

This is amazing! ... i pictured it very well in my thoughts. Fabulous job !

on May. 8 2010 at 8:16 am
Krista Burnette BRONZE, Hixson, Tennessee
1 article 0 photos 2 comments
This is so beautiful! It's full of feeling.

kristen16 said...
on Apr. 29 2010 at 9:44 pm
this is really,really good!!

Eilatan GOLD said...
on Apr. 16 2010 at 9:57 am
Eilatan GOLD, Old Greenwich, Connecticut
11 articles 1 photo 307 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Nobody is normal. Everybody in the world is a weirdo freak. Except you, which makes you a weirdo freak.&quot;

this is so, so good i can't even describe it. one of my new favorite poems this is so meaningful i love it. GOOD JOB KEEP WRITING!!!!!!

Lay18 PLATINUM said...
on Feb. 16 2010 at 9:07 am
Lay18 PLATINUM, Portsmouth, Virginia
30 articles 0 photos 18 comments

Favorite Quote:
Live and Learn

nice work!!!!

on Feb. 9 2010 at 10:23 am
Estelle_Star SILVER, Union Grove, Wisconsin
7 articles 3 photos 42 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;I love writing. I love the swirl and swing of words as they tangle with human emtions,&quot; James A. Michener.

I love this. It is just amazing and I had to read it multiple times. You have so much meaning and feeling in this. Keep writing!