Questions (To the Thought)

I’ve ruined all my life

but I’ve got nothing to show for it –

teach me how to ask a question, any question;

build and rebuild the same bridges

and you will not be privy,

even to yourself;

join again the harkening

of the screeching crow

and you will not be led to it –

what gangsters are you with,

what crows?

Stages of Atrophy

I

Humming at a heated rest

My each day masks

An unheard comment –

Tiny smile, mark the mile

Witness to a living breed.

II

Knuckles dig a little deeper;

Anyone can gain an inch

When backs are sore

And everything has atrophied.

III

The hills are stretched.

Fish, let pollen to the dying fish.

Entreaty

Upon discovering the

Foggy aim,

The steady shoulders,

Capital letters

And the death threats,

Having no time

To pick it apart, with no

Context, read aloud…

To walk away from

Said fantasy,

Trite in every way,

Willed into

Submission, by all counts

Teary-eyed,

With so many choices,

Comfortable places to turn,

To watch the contours

Of a stupid phrase

Unfold, to will it into

Oneness, wishing

I knew now

What I’ll know then,

With all due respect,

Sit down and ponder

On your failing instinct,

Knowing it will come:

The last call for alcohol

Paid for with a certain due.

Try to speak now,

Freely as you can,

Knowing that

What’s done is done.

Forget the things

You owe the world;

They’ll write

The way that lies

Between the promises,

Seeping in like acrid smoke

And tickling the moorings

Of your youth…