Emptied?

It's empty in here
Cleared away like ash after an intensely burning fire
I deliberately sucked it all up and threw the ashes to the wind
I figured it could have a new life upon the breeze of someone else's fresh start
or in the belly of someone's warm home
Warm milk
makes me think of childhood
the way I used to warm up my cereal like my dad did
warm milk and crunchy cereal turned soggy sweet
I liked it like that.  Still do
People think it's absurd
Just like giving away almost everything you own
So that you can clear the clutter of the past and
be free
Can I ever be free of my past?
It's the foundation that my present is built on
Happily I accept
The strength and insistence and persistence of women
The gentleness of men
The careful tidiness of home
The warmth of burning fires and the smell of home cooked food
The tinkling sound of laughter and music like a distant bell
Ringing through the living spaces
Where we lived
And laughed
And cried
And danced
And cared for one another
And tried to forget
And tried to find ourselves
Everything is relative
So of course there was pain and suffering
But there was also joy and growth
I accept
I build my present and my presence on the winds of the laughter ringing
like a distant bell
I bring myself closer to it
And hope to fly