> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.yacubdavidsmith.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Leaving Hanover
- URL: https://www.yacubdavidsmith.com/leaving-hanover/
- Published: 2026-09-26T05:50:19.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-20T15:27:21.000Z
- Author: yacub david smith
- Tags: Poetry, Just Like Cambridge

It’s never easy /  
even when the road’s wide open /  
even when you tell yourself / you’re done.  
Hanover holds on /  
not loud /  
just a weight behind your ribs.

The classrooms are still /  
chalk ghosts on slate /  
late sun curling on desks like memory.  
Dice clattered once / in a frat house on Main /  
no one remembers who won / or who stayed.  
She was there / blond / Jersey /  
laughing like she meant forever.

The Range Rover still slides past the Green /  
a ghost in a cashmere coat /  
the country club in Quechee still serves salmon /  
to someone who might’ve been me /  
if I’d said yes / just once more.

I’m leaving Hanover /  
and yes / I chose this /  
but you never really leave /  
you just stop opening the door.

and if you’re still there /  
watching me fade behind the hill /  
then know this:  
if you wait for me / I’ll remember your name.

I left / not because I stopped loving /  
but because staying was too still /  
and love / real love / moves.

It’s easier to leave /  
than to be left behind /  
but promise me /  
you’ll walk a little slower / just in case.