the news comes in code
through stickers on the lightposts
and the callboxes that hang on their waists
now, comes the sixth estate

every slapped palm
on the back of a stop sign
riles up the collective mind

between flap of the butterfly’s wings
and the sky
i simmer

inside
i took too long
now my eyes won’t stop

out here
today is a promise
i can see

all words are invented
all quotes are out of context
all perspectives have their mirror
all corrections their error

and my big thing today:
to flatten the path that cuts across the hill
the drizzle brings a softer soil
the excitement stirs its endless water
and four tight circuits later
a triumph, quartered

it costs what it costs,
so what? a loss is a loss,
a gain a gain.
the nastiest memories line
the sturdiest frames

and vicious and lovely
is vicious the same

a trick that i play on my mind:
it’s morning, i’m alive
i fall for it every time
they warned us about it
but i don’t care
i still like to keep it nearby

i shelve my peak
and sliver the day
that won’t be a day
onto a plate and
off to the side