you take me to the community table where I like
watching all the old men socialize with one another but
today my eyes translated their lives into death
that one, with the nicotine stained beard, he’ll
stumble into the heart attack named widow-maker
and that young man, with the black pencil on his waterline,
an overdose of some sort, vomit dripping from the corner of his lips
it’s easier, these days, to color vacancy in their eyes, stay between the lines
.
I gravitate towards you like plants to the sun
tendrils and leaves reaching reaching reaching
to kiss your warm skin, feel whole again
phototropism commanding muscle and bone
but these days, I only see the moon
where are you? In this darkness, I am alone
.
I wear a scarf around my neck because
a rope would be inappropriate
and the albatross is not native to Michigan
.
what happened to us, love?
we used to collide twelve hours a day
now we sit in silence, screens before us
a quiet loneliness
blame it on vitamins
blame it on insufficiency
but we used to be tethered by the hips
now we’re separated with sealed lips
Just Thoughts 