The Thursday We Were Ghosts

Echoes belong to places where people have laughed, sung, and returned often enough to leave something behind.

Photo by ayumi kubo on Unsplash

We weren’t there.

Which is exactly why it felt as though we were.

Karaoke was canceled because of the heat.

But George was still singing Sinatra.

Sylvia was still clapping more than was necessary.

I was still flipping through the songbook, unable to decide.

Dave was still singing the same song he’s been singing since the Clinton administration.

Thursday happened.

We just attended in spirit.

That’s the thing about places we return to often enough.

Eventually, they begin expecting us.

Even on the nights we don’t come.

Write for your welcoming family on Medium:

[embed]How To Write For Us All Styles. All Genres. No Rules.medium.com

Read more:

[embed]The Man Who Kept a Low Profile A karaoke singer refused to appear on a tiny YouTube channel, and naturally, we concluded he was a fugitivemedium.com

[embed]Nobody at the Karaoke Bar Is Okay Every Thursday night, a group of seniors reveal far more than they realize through their song choicesmedium.com

© Victoria Ponte — 2026.