Now I have known you for just a little while 
I feel I must be wearing my welcome 
I must be moving on 
For my intentions were good intentions 
I could have loved you, I could have changed you 
I wouldn't be so, I wouldn't feel so 
Consumed by selfish thoughts 
I'm sorry if I seem self-effacing 
Consumed by selfish thoughts 
It's only that I still love you deeply 
It's all the love I got

I never thought I would leave here. It only seemed likely when the Earth was scorched, but then I’d be running away. And well, as I was once told: it’s what some people wanted. I refused to bend the knee and I carried on, despite feeling like the chemistry in the air had changed. I maneuvered through the methane clouds of hostility and anger and astonishingly made a life for myself that was worth living. I know this now because of the warmth that I’ve been experiencing over the last few months, as tears swell up in my eyes, reminiscing about the last times I’ll be at my favorite locations in the city of Chicago. A final bike ride up and down the 37-mile stretch that makes up the lakefront path, doing a wine tour with my wife, my in-laws, my brother, and his partner, or catching up with old high school friends and colleagues at the diviest bars throughout the city. Even the piss-scented aroma of Rossi’s felt bittersweet leaving behind. I love this city, even when it didn’t love me back. And I love it more now, saying farewell to a place that taught me more lessons than I care to count. I simply cannot articulate or possess the necessary diction or language to impart why Chicago is so important to me. I carry it with me, in my marrow, building blocks of my DNA, forever, strengthened by time.