"smoke rising from this wreckage / bobbing in the water / like an unloved jack-in-the-box" -- Exceptionally clever simile here, floating on a sea of original lines in this poem. I'd rate you pretty highly if you had given the option, but as you have not, I hope that compliment will suffice. :)

Upon first reading this and seeing these lines:
Do you see it?
out near
Last Hope?
I thought using a more sea-farer type language would work better for this poem. But the melancholy tone is a universal cry that fits well with the haunting flavor of a lonely sea. Thanks for sharing.

I agree with V and A.If I had written this line "Do you see it?..out near..Last Hope?",I would be having trouble deciding whether last hope should be lost hope.But then,I would've concluded that I liked the contrast of a last hope along with a lost hope.Sadly, I feel the sadness too, and the clue...is in the title. Interesting that you express giving up hope when you stop feeling(stop hurting, stop missing.. like, going numb)...a few lines(perhaps because of their order in within the stanza's)causes my mind confusion because they read like a paradox,and perhaps that was the intention) :)

I understand lost hope well. I ache reading this. Well done.

...sometimes the line breaks are right, this one is; and to lace it w/ the pain/joy of life from simplicity is tantamount...like clara mae said: everyone has a druther...i.e., lost/last...sorta phenomenal that you get that kind of rise...your start, (add the line-breaks), middle and the last lines...a fulfilling haunt...you speak of existential want, not billy dosen't love me anymore boo hoo boo hoo...allison, the world is yinyang and it's just a dip for you...good write...

... such wonderful useage and imagery....

I love the change in tempo in the last three stanzas. Also, "you ask me if I love // my answer is in the wind" rings very true to me. This is a gorgeous poem; thanks for sharing!

There is some beautiful imagery in here Allison -and you tackled a subject that is very difficult for any of us to deal with but with a grace and strength that makes for some really good writing -thank you so much for sharing!

Allison, this brings together the tears of all of us who've been crushed. Then it surrounds the pain we have with a glimmer of not being all alone. Beautifully written, gentle and searing at once.

So sad...yet all too often true. You express loss very eloquently here.

and you say i write hopeless romantic poetry!? this is dripping with broken hearts and poisoned arrows. this is pretty, in a breakdown kind of...fatalistic, but not too...way. it's simple but strong, short but not short of depth. quite gorgeous.

The disjointed sink of hope and the compression of projected resolution are reflected in the form adopted here; very effective -- poignant and atmospheric.

"circulating the remains of some lost idea" - loved this phrase. Also liked the change in tempo towards the end. There is definitely a paradox in letting hope sink when the memory is finally faded. I keep wanting to end it after the word "wind". The pain comes through clearly from your words. Thank you.

How amazing to be able to feel so deeply - I feel guilty.

Wonderful Allison. I love poetry that asks me something, invites me to wonder along with the poet. Very nice, thank you.