dig for inspiration
bankrupt,

koiless pond brought
to listless
simmer,

fancies glimmer
three shades
fainter

since cache
cleared-

a faceless fog
burned
off

real’s threshold
should i
cross.

winter semester’s
leftovers
flake
like

chalk
contours me

where aspirations
fell asleep,

screen flickers with
a younger
cast

poorly paid and
painted
over

convocation
portrait
of

any student forced
to ignore
spills

on dorm room
carpets,

i watch you
heavy

haunt my
way

up
ladder

onto kick out
stool,

attic toys don’t
play

with kids from
dried up
pools,

from beyond
voices
twist

like fishing line
around my
fists.

dear, dare i
accept

the limits of
a smile

in the heat of
distress,

stripped of prince
gown-

all fashion, no
function,

no comfort in
the nude,

hostile
to seduction-

am behind the
glass flirt

in moods most
perverse.

blow faux kiss
to flatter

tattered toy talking
without moving
mouth,

moth wing pinned
to pillow
not

casualty of dust
storm
not

without its
charm..

toadstool from
his torpor,

spare me the
stupor

of logic and
order

spoil madness with
meaning.